This year there are about 25 new members of the Idaho Legislature. It presents another opportunity to get URA's reformed to allow voters to weigh in on bonding debt or continue down the road we have been on with all the tax and spend abuses and NO Voter Oversight.
The latest abuse of URA law in Idaho is in Nampa where they want to create a one block UR District to accommodate a Caldwell developer. The site is the old Mercy Hospital and is nothing more than an effort to cut taxpayers out of the funding decisions for this very questionable project. Make no mistake the developer is not in this to restore a piece of Nampa's history. He is there to make money on the backs of Nampa and Canyon County taxpayers and federal taxpayers.
There was plenty of evidence of taxpayer abuse presented last year at the Idaho Legislature but the political will to actually do anything was severely lacking. The pro URA people launched a statewide organization of URA's headed up by former CCDC head Phil Kushlan. Mr. Kushlan is funded by annual dues from all state URA's via a $500.00 fee from each URA in Idaho. Once again using taxpayer dollars to lobby state legislators to keep URA laws as they are and promote all the taxpayer abuse intact.
The best solution for all this is to simply abolish Urban Renewal Districts statewide. They are allowed to pick "winners and losers" in how cities get developed. They do almost zero urban renewal and promote crony capitalism in the process. The answer to all this is to level the playing field in Idaho Cities and get local levy rates low enough to give all potential developers and their projects and equal opportunity. And in the process let capital investments go where the best opportunities lie in our communities.
What you can do is get on the Idaho Legislature web pages and let your local legislators know how you feel about URA's. The total lack of voter oversight of URA's in Idaho is simply wrong and it won't change without your help.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
13 comments:
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If you delve into the big give away program the owners of most of this are not the least bit interested in the community where they end up locating. They choose to live elsewhere and when the next big give away opportunity comes up they locate in the city where the "give away lotto" is the largest. And on the otherside they pull up and move out where they are least vested.
ReplyDeleteI really am sick and tired of all the predatory capitalism with low paying jobs with increased tax burdens on citizens where this is and has been going on for years.
The restaurant grapevine got together on Saturday, and we were debating on whether we are going to see kabuki theatre, or the dog and pony show being performed for this years session. UR is always brought up, but they never do anything about it. UR is just an emotional political talking point to get someones vote.
ReplyDeleteOusting Tom Dale from office would be a good start.
ReplyDeleteYeah, but how far is UR embedded into the infrastucture of Nampa? It has become its own bureaucracy with its own group of czars. Hard to untangle something like that. The whole city establishment would have to be purged.
DeleteI would agree with Mr. Vermillion but would add that we also need to replace both Martin Thorne and Pam White . They along with Mr. Dale have cost us upwards of $60,000,000 in unnecessary spending. It is time to put a stop to the monument building.
ReplyDeleteGetting rid of Team Tom Dale and all of his apparatchiks, IS a monumental task. Got any ideas?
Deleteyou won't get rid of tom dale or nancolas until you have a serious change in what people are willing to believe. as long as mr. dale and mr. nancolas have their "wizzard of oz" persona and that they are doing a great job then things will continue..
Deleteall the media outlets have not been willing to call "bull" on these two elected officials. i really to think it time a new generation step up and take over in both nampa and caldwell.
and Dale, and Rule and Alder....
ReplyDeleteAnd I would wholeheartedly agree with Bob.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately our so called news sources seem to be firmly on team Tom and have no interest in providing facts that are not popular with the powers that be.One would think preventing any voter input on the spending of $60,000,000 plus of tax money would rate a little comment in the local media. But its clear the fix is in. I guess we deserve the government we elect.
ReplyDeleteYou got that right. City and local governments retain the local news media outlets to put the positive spin on what they are doing. Check out the propaganda that is coming from the local school district. I just wonder how many are going to drink their kool-aid.
DeleteYep, it is a smaller version of how the main stream media shields the Obama administration from any form of accountability by choosing not to report on issues that would cast him in any form of negativity. This is why the newspaper delivery car only stops at two houses in my entire neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteWe would have to be kidding ourselves to think that the Idaho Legislature would pass any law that would take money out of their rich pockets, and help out the middle class. By the way the restaurant grapevine heard a rumor over the holiday season that Tom Dale might not run for mayor again. Instead he is thinking about running for governor in 2014. Keep your eyes and ears open.
ReplyDelete