Sound Off: How much are you willing to see property taxes increase.......

[First Lady]

Sound Off: How much are you willing to see property taxes increase over the next three years?
Calgary Herald
Saturday, November 01, 2008


A budget that could lead to the highest tax increases since the early 1980s has some aldermen lining up to battle Mayor Dave Bronconnier and his belief more money is necessary to pay for essential services.

"I am hearing loud and clear that this is a tax revolt. People have had enough of this," Ald. Diane Colley-Urquhart said of increases potentially adding up to 22 per cent over the next three years.

Continued and opportunity to sound off:
http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/...5-da7df800879d

[Prototype]

I'll take "zero percent" for one thousand, Alex.

[Ford Prefect]

Double digit ... but with a minus sign in front.

[Ozy_Flame]

22% over five years, first year is 9% the following is about 6.5% in year two and three.

Please remember guys, the budget has to go to Council first before approval, so it's not a sure thing.

[OzSome]

I am tired of Bronco raising our taxes every freaking year. How much am I willing to see property taxes increase??? How about 0%!!

I don't work for an Oil company and I don't make the big salary so basically whatever I earned goes to my mortgage, food, other necessity and property tax. If Bronco have to raise my property tax by another $200+, then that will take away $200 off my food and stuff.

Yes, I understand he wants to put more police in the city, more improvement on the road and so on, but come on... isn't it time to cut their budget and get rid of some of those useless city administrators who is making so much more money than 3 regular citizen combined. I am also sure he wants to have a road traffic improvement but he is doing it the wrong way. For example, there is a sign up on 14th Street South about meeting at Haysboro Elementary School on Tuesday, November 4th regarding the widening of 14th Street. Widening 14th Street will not help the traffic on 14th and Glenmore until we have the ring road on 37th Street SW. The people from the South (Evergreen, Somerset, Millrise, Shawnessy, Bridlewood and others) need to have another access to downtown other than 14th Street. The reason for 14th Street traffic every single morning was because of the traffic lights and way too many cars(mostly from South) going there and the traffic light on 37th Street at Glenmore Trail (westbound). If they have the ring road on 37th Street, you will see less cars on 14th Street and free flow traffic on Glenmore Trail westbound.
Of course if Bronco's gang approved the widening of 14th Street, that means they will have to purchase some of the properties in Haysboro and other community. That means that's another waste of taxpayer's money. I say before he commits to something else in regards to road constructions, do something about the 37th Street Ring Road first. Oh yeah, Bronco if you are reading this..... not everything is being resolved in bullying. You cannot bully the province in giving you more money, you can't bully the Indian chiefs to get what you want. And please stop blaiming province or someone else for your administration's incompetence.

[MoneyGuy]

^The mayor doen't raise taxes.

[Bend it like Bourgeois]

^^ in calgary the mayor does everything. His EA isn't called Marc the knife for nothing.

[CrusaderPi]

I really have no problems with seeing my property taxes increased. Municipal taxes provide a much more tangible benefit to me then the other varieties.

[First Lady]

The CFIB predicted this.

Full summary: http://www.fcei.ca/legis/alberta/pdf/ab5682.pdf

[TheyCallMeBruce]

I have no problems in increase in taxes. However, a 9% increase is just plain crazy. All for what, to fund projects like that stupid bridge? Do we really need that bridge?

[First Lady]

Originally Posted by TheyCallMeBruce

Do we really need that bridge?

You know I have been giving that more thought. One of the main purposes of the bridge is to promote walking and cylcling to work.

Why stop there. Couldn't we encourage people to swim across the Bow to work?

It has excellent health benefits. For a fraction of the $25 M the city could cover swim leasons for those interested. And they would get the added bonus of the health rebates offered by the province.

It would be a win-win-win scenerio.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by First Lady

You know I have been giving that more thought. One of the main purposes of the bridge is to promote walking and cylcling to work.

Why stop there. Couldn't we encourage people to swim across the Bow to work?

It has excellent health benefits. For a fraction of the $25 M the city could cover swim leasons for those interested. And they would get the added bonus of the health rebates offered by the province.

It would be a win-win-win scenerio.

[This is a great idea! Then the far right (like the Wildrose Alliance, or whatever they are called today) could really have their way! They could reduce taxes and enforce survival of the fittest at the same time! Plus wouldn't industry be doing us all a favour when they decreased the flow of the river? ]

In answer to the real question though I don't have a huge problem with the tax increases. I think that there is a certain standard of living that I want in the city and it costs money to get it there. To me the larger disgrace is that we are stupid enough to pay the province enough money to run huge surpluses, and have our municipalities running deficits in the same cycle.

[CrusaderPi]

Build
Absolutely
Nothing
Anywhere
Near
Anything

Edmonton tried building nothing and not raising property taxes for the 90's. It does not serve the future (which is not the present) very well.

[AFireInside]

I don't know. I don't really see the uproar. Calgary still has much lower taxes than most cities does it not?

[Bend it like Bourgeois]

^^ lower residential property tax rates then some.

The overall basket of residential taxes, user fees, utlitiy rates, business txa etc etc etc is below-avergae to poor.

I'd be interested to see a comparison of other funding sources too. I'll bet (though I have no idea) that the province gives calgary and edmonton a good chunk more than most other cities get.

[habernac]

Originally Posted by First Lady

You know I have been giving that more thought. One of the main purposes of the bridge is to promote walking and cylcling to work.

Why stop there. Couldn't we encourage people to swim across the Bow to work?

It has excellent health benefits. For a fraction of the $25 M the city could cover swim leasons for those interested. And they would get the added bonus of the health rebates offered by the province.

It would be a win-win-win scenerio.

I can get to work downtown by bicycle just fine on the current infrastructure, and they're not exactly overcrowded at this time. The bridges are an unnecessary expense at a time when the city needs to spend money in other places.

[First Lady]

Originally Posted by habernac

I can get to work downtown by bicycle just fine on the current infrastructure, and they're not exactly overcrowded at this time.
The bridges are an unnecessary expense at a time when the city needs to spend money in other places.

Oh, I agree with you. Guess I should have used green text. My bad.

[OzSome]

I don't mind raising taxes if the money is being use properly. If we need more police, firemen, paramedics and road improvement, I am all for it but City Hall has to be responsible. What I am saying is prioritize what Calgary really needs ie:

1. more Police. I don't feel safer to go downtown or anywhere else right now. With all the stupid gang killing, we need to have more police on the street.

2. On road improvement, work on the ring road(37th Street) first before you make a plan on widening 14th Street. Do not overspend on pedestrian bridge. $25M is a little crazy to spend on pedestrian bridge.

3. Do not give the city administration, managers and so on unneccessary salary raise. Then complain about no money.

4. LRT improvement, Bus system improvement and so on.

[Nancy]

If they increase taxes by 10% next year, that will mean that my tax bill is 50% higher than it was four years ago. (I guess the Assessors at City Hall have us blacklisted or something.) Any way you cut it, that is obscene in my books.

[AFireInside]

nm