Well, this nice union group that represents the fire fighters while negotiating positions and raises with LR city hall has come out in support of the "$todola Mega tax" proposal...what a BIG surprise.
They are now using money given to them through employee union dues to market fliers to send EVERYONE in LR one of those cute cards in the mail stating why we should agree to have our taxes raised. I have looked into how much this cost...and it is A LOT, but then what the heck...once they get this pile of money from our taxes, the doors to future Mega-raises will be thrown wide open!!! Along with those bigger fatter union dues that will pay them back for these fliers (that would be WE will pay them back for these fliers through our increased taxes!!!)...
Their positions appear to be an underhanded implication that it is good for us and we are going to get all these wonderful things as a result: or that if we do not...OUR HOUSES WILL BURN DOWN!!!!
More on the jump...
Adding firefighters to the force - this would be the "so-called" necessary need to provide decreased response times, or as the LR fire chief has stated publicly to provide adequate coverage due to the significant increase in the LR city footprint since 1992. That would be the accelerated annexation of western properties, by our LR developers at very "cheap" cost, with little to no real oversight from City hall or any attempt to moderate such expansion outward through impact fees (mostly because those same developers have prevented any such discussions from taking place).
So in the end, we now have to agree to have our taxes increased, along with these "so-called" economic development items and fancied up infrastructure projects, in order for them to provide these needed fire services. So I guess this means they are saying...if we do not agree they may just have to let our houses burn down...VERY PROFESSIONAL!!!
To build the city's first new fire station since 1992 - The reasons for the need of this station are discussed above. Except they do not point out that the tax proposal includes 2 new fire stations, the other in that other area of wild-cat expansions in Southwest Little Rock. It also does not point out that this West LR fire station actually has the money to build it, without a tax increase, except for all the fancy frills and fancy dangle doors and fru fru items added to it that raised the price by 1 million. Without these the money to build the station is in the bank.
Reducing response times in times of our greatest need - in other words, by a recent statement from the fire chief, they will get there 5 to 10 minutes sooner. So I am not a fire fighter expert, but we have had only 2 or 3 fires in our neighborhood in about 12 years and if they were delayed by 5 minutes and the house completely burned down....those 5 minutes would not have helped (likely the house was set on fire by a meth lab explosion). Yet again...this statement seems to imply that if we do not agree to this tax increase our houses or structures will be allowed to burn down. You know where I came from that sounds a lot like doom and gloom or in some places as blackmail.
So, in the end, this is just a simple example of the pro-tax forces efforts to provide the voters with just one side of the story. They tell you how wonderful everything is going to be and how desperately they need all these items. But you know what you do not see here, a link to a location where you can find an outside, objective, report showing a REAL need for all these things THEY say we NEED and should agree to pay increased taxes. The majority of which we will be paying...FOREVER...long after the new Fire fighters are hired and the stations are built and the trucks bought.
Or, in other words.....THE DEVIL IS ALWAYS IN THE DETAILS, and as concerns how many LR jobs will we get for our development payments, what streets will be refurbished, will we actually have REAL discussions about more stringent controls on future development and reforms at city hall...we the taxpayers have NO RIGHT to ask for any of these latter details.
THIS IS JUST A COMMUNITY DISCUSSION ABOUT MONEY..OR AS OUR CH REPS SAY...
"JUST GIVES US THE MONEY AND - TRUST US"....not me,
Vote "NO'" tax on Sept. 13th!
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