sam1931
New Member
Merry Christmas
Posts: 35
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Post by sam1931 on Nov 13, 2013 19:44:10 GMT -6
Peolpe MUST start attending City Council Meetings on a REGULAR BASIS! If you do NOT show up, they will do whatever they want to do!! Face it, Get up off the couch and take back your city!!
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Post by rukidding (towns local troll) on Nov 13, 2013 19:44:44 GMT -6
Does anyone know how much our new code,building,whatever guy is being paid. More than HE IS WORTH. There was NOTHING WRONG with the Fire Dept. looking for Code Violations. At least THEY did Their Job.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 13, 2013 19:47:28 GMT -6
I bet it is somewhere between more than it should be and too much.
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Post by hawk on Nov 13, 2013 20:12:32 GMT -6
Does anyone know how much our new code,building,whatever guy is being paid. More than HE IS WORTH. There was NOTHING WRONG with the Fire Dept. looking for Code Violations. At least THEY did Their Job. They still are and will. The other guy does a different job. His is a combination of two part time positions for buildings.
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Post by hawk on Nov 13, 2013 20:14:12 GMT -6
Peolpe MUST start attending City Council Meetings on a REGULAR BASIS! If you do NOT show up, they will do whatever they want to do!! Face it, Get up off the couch and take back your city!! Do it! Then maybe you'll actually understand whats going on instead of flying by the seat of your pants.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 14, 2013 8:44:08 GMT -6
Clearly, you don't think that Nicholson is doing his job properly. The only reason I asked for suggestions was that it seems there are many armchair quarterbacks who can just say cut expenses, but don't really have a clue on how much those cuts will save and what would be the ramifications of those cuts. It may not be your job to find cuts, but respectfully, it is your responsibility as a citizen and taxpayer to at least research the issue and maybe make a positive and educated suggestion. You are right dog, most citizens don't have the information needed to know what cuts should be made and how much some of them would save. I could suggest that they could postpone the fountain project until we could actually afford it to put $38,000 towards the deficit, from information that was in the paper. That would just leave another $22,000 to come up with. However, if I wanted to suggest that since they didn't include an automatic irrigation system for the new landscaping in the park, instead of paying for four public works guys and two large sewer vacuum vehicles that we could buy a couple of hoses and have some Garden Club volunteers or community service workers water flowers daily throughout the summer, I wouldn't be able to provide the amount of savings on payroll and equipment expenses that would be generated; I could only speculate that it would be over $22,000. We don't have all the information needed to decide what cuts should be made. That is why I look at the end results of what they do. Higher taxes, very low and still decreasing property values, and continually decreasing population is what I see. That is why I say that we need new leaders. My armchair quarterbacking must have been acceptable, since it wasn't picked apart. If someone without all the information they have is able to come up with cuts that could keep from having to raise taxes, I would think that they would be able to come up with even more ways to live within their means. If it were for an investment in the future of our community, I would not be so against it, but so that they can fund their pet projects and take properties off the tax rolls without providing a plan for them, is just not acceptable to me. Having the highest taxes in the county already, with so little services, raising taxes even more will only be another reason for some people to decide to leave and others to not come here. Population, property value and tax revenue just keep decreasing, but they keep heading in the same direction.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 14, 2013 9:21:07 GMT -6
...Or maybe no one wants to argue with you. LOL FYI - the garden club has spent time watering, weeding, cleaning up litter, etc. in the park, and the city of streator signs, and a few other areas. Over 200 hours - probably closer to 250 now. Because I stand behind what I believe in? I commend the work of the Garden Club, Thank You.
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Post by oldtimer on Nov 14, 2013 10:25:54 GMT -6
A $60,000 deficit isn't that bad considering the economy and that figure can be balanced without raising taxes.
What city officials are looking at is down the road to next year and the following years. They see increasing costs that aren't increasing at the same percentage as the revenue.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 14, 2013 10:51:37 GMT -6
Not at all. It is good to stand up for what you believe in. However, has anyone on here ever changed your mind about anything? You believe what you believe in and no one is going to change your mind. P.S. There is nothing wrong with that. There are certain things, like fighting being unacceptable, that I can't see anyone changing my mind on. I used to think that there was no way that our city could own 220 E. Main St., but people on here have changed my mind on that. I like the flowers in the park, it dresses it up nicely, but do you know how much the expenses are to water them? It looked like a lot of man hours to me. How much do those sewer vacuum trucks cost each? I've spent a lot of time trying to improve our park too. After supervising community service workers to scrub and paint graffiti, pick up trash, etc., I would think that getting some flowers watered shouldn't have to be a big expense for us. I just think we could be spending more prudently and for better investments in our future, I would be happy about park improvements that we could afford, but how many years will we have payments on the band shell? Without those payments would it be necessary to raise taxes? If we need a tax increase to make up a deficit, can we pretty much write off having any more police presence to be able to take an eyewitness statement on a mugging? If you were on the council , how would you vote on this tax increase?
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 14, 2013 10:59:50 GMT -6
They see increasing costs that aren't increasing at the same percentage as the revenue. What are you talking about? With the way property values have been dropping and more good people keep leaving, what revenues are increasing other than vacant building fines/fees and the tax rates they keep raising?
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Post by dive61364 on Nov 14, 2013 11:06:50 GMT -6
what oldtimer is saying myself is................the city is spending more then what is coming in I think.
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Post by oldtimer on Nov 14, 2013 11:09:23 GMT -6
They see increasing costs that aren't increasing at the same percentage as the revenue. What are you talking about? With the way property values have been dropping and more good people keep leaving, what revenues are increasing other than vacant building fines/fees and the tax rates they keep raising? So, what is the percentage of the revenue decrease each year in Streator?
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Post by oldtimer on Nov 14, 2013 11:10:24 GMT -6
what oldtimer is saying myself is................the city is spending more then what is coming in I think. Thanks, Dive. That's exactly what I'm saying. Nice to see that you can help others who can't seem to comprehend a post.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2013 11:20:01 GMT -6
Nothing is ever going to get better until all forms of Government start spending LESS than what they take IN.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Nov 14, 2013 11:31:33 GMT -6
what oldtimer is saying myself is................the city is spending more then what is coming in I think. Thanks, Dive. That's exactly what I'm saying. Nice to see that you can help others who can't seem to comprehend a post. I feel that the statement implied that revenue is increasing. It is a shame that it isn't, maybe we should start doing things differently. If the person on state aid spends more than what they take in, should they go get more state aid, or should they start spending less? Maybe our city should start spending less.
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