Ok, no more of this...

From the Letters to the Editor, Roanoke Times:

Taxes, not stadium, should be the issue

I received reassessment notices recently from Roanoke. I own four properties in the city.

The taxes were increased from a low of 7 percent to a high of 15 percent. I assume other owners received similar increases.

This large increase affects every citizen, both renter and property
owner. This increase, coupled with last year's hefty rise, puts an
undue burden on thousands of Roanokers.

It is time for Roanoke City Council and the candidates in the
upcoming election to focus on a meaningful tax-rate reduction instead
of tiresome bickering over the stadium issue.

The first job of local government is to oversee a safe city. The second most important job is to run a cost-efficient city.

Roanoke has, at best, a static population. The inflation rate is in the 3 percent range.

A 7 percent to 15 percent tax increase is not justified, and should be addressed immediately.

Lee T. Lawson

Allright, I've had just about enough of this....

Griping and whining about property taxes going up. Now, where do those taxes go? The city itself - the parks, the schools, the social services, trash collection, police and fire departments...

So you don't want your taxes raised? Then start hauling your trash yourself. Go clean a park. And police your own streets. Fight your own fires.

A city must, in order to be a good and desireable city, provide certain basic services to its residents. The residents must fund the projects, as citys are not non-profit organizations and can only recieve certain grants and funding.

You don't like your assesment going up, well imagine if it went down. Property rates start going down, the cost of the city providing services remains the same, and suddenly - theres no more money to buy another police car. The city will really be unsafe then, as the police and fire department are forced to run skeleton crews.

And heres a secret you won't hear anywhere else. Your property taxes going up means your property is more valueable. And your property value going up is a GOOD THING.

The most desireable properties in the country are in areas where property values go up, city services have no problem with funding, and property taxes are in the high-median range.

Its called a ROI - or Return on Investment. Study it, read about it - its worth it. And that investment you make in the city of your choice, by paying property taxes, determines what kind of city you live in. Being a decent civilian who uses their voice in the business of the city doesnt hurt either.

So go ahead and gripe about your property taxes going up, but I come from an area where property taxes run in the $6-12,000 a year range, and yet everyone wants to be there - paying those high taxes.

Ever wonder why they only pick up the trash once a week for residences but more often for downtown businesses? Think about it.