Saturday, March 21, 2009

Memphis Desperate for Money

Shelby County tax appraisals have started coming in, and residents are not happy. In a climate of decreasing values, it would seem logical that tax appraisals would also follow downward. However, that's not the case with most parts of the county. Here are a couple of articles (link, link) from The Commercial Appeal. Midtown & Downtown residents will find out at the end of this month, but I'm sure the bad news will continue.

A second example centers around my neighborhood. Over the last week or so we've had a code enforcement officer going around ticketing residents for very minor infractions (for example, having mardi gras beads on the porch). Now the first problem with this is that I'm on the safety committee of the CYCA, and it's going to appear to some that this is our doing. However, the primary problem is the motivation. Is it all about Memphis' need for money?

Everyone is struggling, and this includes the government, but the government shouldn't make their problems go away by adding to the problems of their residents. That's my 2 cents.

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