So anyone from around here has heard at least one side of the river tax proposal. I cant help but be against it. To me it's a no-brainer. I'l list my reasons.
Corps of Engineers approval has not yet been obtained. Why are we going thru with a vote to raise taxes for a project we might not even get approval to do?
Riverbed of the Arkansas River is owned by the Creek nation, not the City or County of Tulsa. If they go altering the river, it alters the riverbed, what’s to say the Creek Nation doesn’t hold us up in court for years to come?
The state of the city’s streets is at an all time bad. They, along with the bridges & overpasses have been neglected for far too long. Our basic infrastructure needs to be attended to before trying to make it a ‘nicer’ place. All the pretty parks in the world aren’t going to bring people to a town where upkeep & maintenance are obviously at the bottom of the totem pole.
Our public schools are a sad reality. All but 3 of our high schools are on the low-performing list, in fact almost half of Tulsa Public Schools are on the list., our teachers are among the lowest paid & our drop out rates are truly phenomenal.
Crime rate in Tulsa out of control. Our crime rate is almost double the national average. The murder rate, per capita, rivals that of New York City.
Vision 2025 addressed some of this already, the 2 low water dams & the shoreline beautification was to be addressed from funds from Vision 2025. Why are we, essentially paying for it yet again?
Where did the money go?
All cities in Tulsa County would not benefit & therefore shouldn’t be taxed. The majority of Tulsa County cities will not directly benefit from the River project, nor would they have occasion to use it. Should cities like Broken Arrow, Collinsville, Owasso, Oakhurst, Prattville & Skiatook have to pay for this?
No trust in the past record of Kathy Taylor & Randi Miller. Both have shown they don’t do things in the best interest of Tulsa; rather in the best interest of their own special interests.
Sales tax rate higher than NYC: The current combined sales tax in Tulsa Oklahoma is over 8.5%. In New York City (widely known as one of the countries highest) it is 8.375%.If the county wide sales tax increase passes, Tulsa’s sales tax will go up to 8.917%Now let’s look at this scenario. How successful will Glenpool, Skiatook, Collinsville, Broken Arrow, and Owasso be in financing their cities if the county has already pushed the taxpayers to the limit. Broken Arrow will most likely be coming out with a financing package early next year for their municipal infrastructure needs. What is the likelihood that the taxpayers have anything left to give? Or want to?
Tulsa very likely will be coming to the taxpayers again soon asking for tax money to pay for road repairs. I have heard estimates of anywhere from $400 million to over $1 billion are needed. What is the likelihood it will pass if we’re already tapped out, and if it does, how likely is Tulsa going to be in attracting new workers if they have one of the highest overall tax burdens in the country, terrible roads, and failing schools? Tulsa County already has the highest combined tax burden of any county in the nearest seven states.
City already can’t properly maintain parks, pools, etc, how are they going to maintain more? Every year, they close more pools because they cant afford to keep them filled & maintained. Our roads are in a sorry shape, bridges falling apart, literally, & this year, the city had to ask for volunteers to do mowing! If we cannot already support what we have, how will we maintain an even larger expense of parks & bridges, dams, etc that will need a lot of costly spending for upkeep?
Altering river can endanger wildlife habitats already in place. The least tern inhabits the Arkansas River, by developing the River & bringing more population encroachment into it, threatens the nesting habits & living spaces of this endangered species.
The 9000 jobs pro’s claim are going to be consisted of temporary construction jobs & then low-paying retail jobs, how’s that going to attract young professionals?
By adding a large amount of low pay retail jobs, it will drive the average wage in Tulsa down even further.
The so-called tax rebate for seniors & low income is only $25.00, they will have to get an application & remember to fill it out & return it.
By adding more parks area, & ignoring the crime rate, will NOT give Tulsa more pride. People here have no pride now, what’s to stop crime, graffiti, trash, & pollution from damaging this multi billion dollar project? Drive along any Tulsa road, you’ll see trash & debris strewn about. What is going to instill pride?
The 117 mill charitable donation is merely a tax shelter & deduction for the rich.
The majority who will frequent the retail on the river will be the upper class, therefore not adding to the ‘entertainment value’ for Tulsa as a whole.
Riverbed of the Arkansas River is owned by the Creek nation, not the City or County of Tulsa. If they go altering the river, it alters the riverbed, what’s to say the Creek Nation doesn’t hold us up in court for years to come?
The state of the city’s streets is at an all time bad. They, along with the bridges & overpasses have been neglected for far too long. Our basic infrastructure needs to be attended to before trying to make it a ‘nicer’ place. All the pretty parks in the world aren’t going to bring people to a town where upkeep & maintenance are obviously at the bottom of the totem pole.
Our public schools are a sad reality. All but 3 of our high schools are on the low-performing list, in fact almost half of Tulsa Public Schools are on the list., our teachers are among the lowest paid & our drop out rates are truly phenomenal.
Crime rate in Tulsa out of control. Our crime rate is almost double the national average. The murder rate, per capita, rivals that of New York City.
Vision 2025 addressed some of this already, the 2 low water dams & the shoreline beautification was to be addressed from funds from Vision 2025. Why are we, essentially paying for it yet again?
Where did the money go?
All cities in Tulsa County would not benefit & therefore shouldn’t be taxed. The majority of Tulsa County cities will not directly benefit from the River project, nor would they have occasion to use it. Should cities like Broken Arrow, Collinsville, Owasso, Oakhurst, Prattville & Skiatook have to pay for this?
No trust in the past record of Kathy Taylor & Randi Miller. Both have shown they don’t do things in the best interest of Tulsa; rather in the best interest of their own special interests.
Sales tax rate higher than NYC: The current combined sales tax in Tulsa Oklahoma is over 8.5%. In New York City (widely known as one of the countries highest) it is 8.375%.If the county wide sales tax increase passes, Tulsa’s sales tax will go up to 8.917%Now let’s look at this scenario. How successful will Glenpool, Skiatook, Collinsville, Broken Arrow, and Owasso be in financing their cities if the county has already pushed the taxpayers to the limit. Broken Arrow will most likely be coming out with a financing package early next year for their municipal infrastructure needs. What is the likelihood that the taxpayers have anything left to give? Or want to?
Tulsa very likely will be coming to the taxpayers again soon asking for tax money to pay for road repairs. I have heard estimates of anywhere from $400 million to over $1 billion are needed. What is the likelihood it will pass if we’re already tapped out, and if it does, how likely is Tulsa going to be in attracting new workers if they have one of the highest overall tax burdens in the country, terrible roads, and failing schools? Tulsa County already has the highest combined tax burden of any county in the nearest seven states.
City already can’t properly maintain parks, pools, etc, how are they going to maintain more? Every year, they close more pools because they cant afford to keep them filled & maintained. Our roads are in a sorry shape, bridges falling apart, literally, & this year, the city had to ask for volunteers to do mowing! If we cannot already support what we have, how will we maintain an even larger expense of parks & bridges, dams, etc that will need a lot of costly spending for upkeep?
Altering river can endanger wildlife habitats already in place. The least tern inhabits the Arkansas River, by developing the River & bringing more population encroachment into it, threatens the nesting habits & living spaces of this endangered species.
The 9000 jobs pro’s claim are going to be consisted of temporary construction jobs & then low-paying retail jobs, how’s that going to attract young professionals?
By adding a large amount of low pay retail jobs, it will drive the average wage in Tulsa down even further.
The so-called tax rebate for seniors & low income is only $25.00, they will have to get an application & remember to fill it out & return it.
By adding more parks area, & ignoring the crime rate, will NOT give Tulsa more pride. People here have no pride now, what’s to stop crime, graffiti, trash, & pollution from damaging this multi billion dollar project? Drive along any Tulsa road, you’ll see trash & debris strewn about. What is going to instill pride?
The 117 mill charitable donation is merely a tax shelter & deduction for the rich.
The majority who will frequent the retail on the river will be the upper class, therefore not adding to the ‘entertainment value’ for Tulsa as a whole.
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1 comments:
You go girl! I like your spunk. Did you read the paper today? They had a full page ad outlining all the times we've voted for a tax increase. Then they asked us to vote yes yet again! It's crazy! I wish I could vote no more than once.
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