Eugene Hart, business administrator for the Ogden School District and also a member of the city taxing entity committee, said the mitigation payment proposal is fair.
“Anything is better than nothing,” he said. “It’s a good option.”
Royce Van Tassell, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, said the Ogden School District should strongly oppose extending The Junction’s tax increment district.[...]
The school district isn’t getting anything in return. They are giving money away (by not being able to collect property taxes from The Junction while the RDA is effect).
The Standard-Examiner follows up on our earlier WCF discussions, with this morning's Scott Schwebke story, reporting that the fix may be in for Boss Godfrey's proposed Junction tax increment bailout. The Ogden School board, which has been offered a $300 thousand annual "mitigation payment," in exchange for supporting the Godfrey administration's bailout plan, appears to be colluding with the Godfrey administration, splitting up its already pennies-on-the -dollar payoff, and throwing a few bones to the smaller special service districts, just to bring them along. Read all about it here:
• Ogden juggles tax increment districtingRoyce Van Tassell, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, is absolutely right in arguing that the Ogden School District should strongly oppose extending The Junction’s tax increment district; and Mr. Eugene Hart, business administrator for the Ogden School District, and sitting member of the city taxing entity committee, is absolutely wrong.
We'll present a couple of graphic representations to show why Mr. Hart possibly needs to go back to school for some remedial math. Here's the graphic from this morning's Std-Ex story, which represents the proposed payoffs to the various entities whom Mr. Hughes, for unknown reasons, is apparently trying to rope into going along with the Mayor's bailout plan:
And here's a helpful table, embedded within an earlier WCF article, showing what all the taxing entities represented by the Ogden RDA TEC Committee can reasonably expect to receive once tax increment moneys begin to flow under terms of the existing junction financing, provided they don't bend over for Godfrey's bailout plan (Click to enlarge image):
Examining these numbers, we're still scratching our heads wondering how any conscientious member of the Ogden RDA Taxing Entity Committee could possibly consider the Mayor's plan to be in any way "fair," or "a good option." As a matter of fact, if any voting member of the TEC is to go along with Boss Godfrey, and accept pennies on the dollar under this knuckleheaded plan, we believe such an act would constitute a clear breach of fiduciary duty, as it would be an act blatantly contrary to the economic interests of the taxing entity he or she is appointed to represent, (along with taxpayers such committee member is supposed to competently serve.)
Compare the numbers yourselves, gentle readers; then ask yourselves what Mr. Hart (and maybe a few others) have been smokin'. Hopefully they'll all have their heads screwed on straight in time for Wednesday's noon TEC Committee meeting.
And don't let the cat get your tongues.
12 comments:
As an aside, Godfrey is funny, in that he courts adventure sports people, but he cant really stand their liberal, drinking and free-love having ways.
Like most of Utah, he welcomes the Liberals dollars, yet have no respect whatsoever for their beliefs or actions.
Anyway.
It would seem that this is created smoke to set precedent as regards his power as mayor to conduct city business as he sees fit.
At this point, rather than looking for him to make fiscally responsible, or irresponsible, moves. persons who are interested should examine all of his actions and plans from a, "what would I do If I thought I wanted to pull one over on everybody who I imagine as my enemies, legally, right in the last year of my office". Examine all of his business, personally and as mayor, as though he was hatching some mad-doctor scheme. a final gotcha to the city at large.
I'm telling ya, this is what hes got planned.
Sadly, we have to wait until 2012 to see Godfrey's last year in office.
I have nothing to say that would not be promptly removed by the blog administrator.
Just sayin
BB
I met with a group of voters this afternoon, and during Q&A, someone asked me if the rumor that Godfrey would not seek another term was true.
Makes you want to sit down and go "Hmmmmm."
Anyone else heard that rumor?
Jennifer Neil
Just noticed that Biker Babe posted something that was not promptly removed by the blog administrator.
Just sayin....
[grin]
I for one have heard that the tolerance of this Blogmeister reaches legendary proportions.
I also am wondering what the TEC members have been smoking. But let's remember that in addition to the mitigation payments, the school district would get some real estate. At this point we don't lnow what real estate, or what it's worth. I doubt it would be worth the lost revenue over the long term, but perhaps the school district is willing to forgo long-term revenue in exchange for getting the real estate now.
Of course, if the RDA has so much valuable real estate to give to the school district, ya gotta wonder how the RDA got all that real estate and why it doesn't just sell it to pay down some of the debt. But I suppose that would be too simple.
The police and fire departments used to use the old Naval Reserve building for training, they were told they had to be very careful inside because the school district was buying it for their new offices. Is this now another Godfrey giveaway?
a little speculating here.
godfrey give away and future swimming pool location when and if he can shut down marshall white and loren farr.
thats my guess but now he will want the ogden city school district to build it. wnat to keep the tax increase off his books but still have the residents pay for it.
disgusted: could you say that again, this time in english?
Yeah, Milt, I agree.
Disgusted, WHAT future swimming pool did Godfrey give away?
Use Upper case and Lower case and even a little punctuation so we can understand what it is you're trying to get across.
Post a Comment