By: Diane Benjamin
On December 20th, during the day and at the BCPA, the City of Bloomington held a budget meeting. The camera angle didn’t allow the charts on the wall to be seen, but a person who was there sent me some of them.
If you forgot this meeting – see this story: https://blnnews.com/2017/12/22/budget-meeting-the-video/
The chart below is what they want to spend money on:
I can save a LOT of money:
Fire station #5 isn’t the one on Six Points Rd – that’s a training facility now. This is a new station. No word on where the staff will come from.
Save $20,000,000 – cancel the library expansion. It’s a want, not a need.
How does an Aquatics Center cost $10,000,000? Re-work it to a need not a want.
The City owns too much property now – cancel purchasing more.
Downtown is dead. Pretty lighting, signage, and more parking garages aren’t going to bring people there. Buying property the owners refuse to develop isn’t the job of citizens.
Brick streets are a want not a need. If the residents want them, take up a collection.
Now see how they want to pay:
Tax increases of course!
(Did you really think they were talking cuts? Ha Ha)
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In 1991 a use tax was passed in Normal . It’s A one time tax on the purchase of all new cars ( not used) if the registration has a normal address. We was told in the phone bloomington has this too. It’s absorbed into the loan papers IF u buy the car in town. If u do not the city comes after you to pay the use tax.
The lady at the normal ( use tax division) on the phone says it goes into the general fund. I had Bob ask.
Letting u know. I’ve never heard of it but it’d sure be nice to know how much this “ use tax” generates to both cities.
Sent from my iPhone
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All of these silly pie-in-the-sky projects are going anywhere. Our entire area is starting an economic spiral downward that it is going to turn it into something resembling Galesburg or Detroit. 2018 is going to see many layoffs at State Farm. 2019 will see even more layoffs at State Farm. And in both 2018 and 2019 will see service and support businesses close by the dozens with hundreds of people losing their jobs. A new library and an aquatics center? I don’t think so… by the middle of 2018 we will be begin to see what a State Farm downsizing will mean for this area. Our entire economy is about to be hallowed out and there is nothing to replace what we are about to lose. While our business and city leadership are silent?
Downtown: one cannot polish a turd.
Nightlife, lawyers, and apartments, that’s all that will be successful downtown.
Higher taxes and in return the government decides my and your quality of life? Tari and the Council are a bunch of statists.