What about us?

[adiposrx]

:confused: Over the course of the past few months, you might have noticed the piles of leaves that have been raked to the curb in North Haven. You might even have seen the piles of disposable household items [lots of exercise machines] brought to curbside in Cheshire. North Haven vacuums-up taxpayers' leaves, and Cheshire picks up household items as a natural service to taxpayers. What about Wallingford? NADA!

[gunderstone]

You are right, North Haven vacuums-up taxpayers' leaves, and Cheshire picks up household items as a natural service to taxpayers and they pay for that in the form of taxes - higher taxes (if I am not mistaken) than what you pay in Wallingford.

By the way, if I am not mistaken, if you bag your leaves in those large brown bags I do believe Wallingford scheduled a "free" pick up of them - you needed to bag them and not rake them to the curb. Extra effort but they were picked up.

I blow all of my leaves into the wooded area behind my house (property that I own) so they compost out there over the winter. As such, the little part of my local taxes that pays for that pick up service is wasted money for me as I don't leverage that service.

Still, it's there and it has been there for some time and I am used to paying it and the majority of the townspeople benefit so I do not complain about it publicly.

On that note however I am reluctant to see that type of service expansion increase without review - let's make sure the residents want or need a given service before elected officials simply decide "let's put it on the books" - once money is collected in the form of a tax it is done regardless of whether you ever use that service

Whether you pay for leaf and bulk garbage removal or whatever out of your pocket or in the form of taxes you do pay for it - nothing is free.

I feel that I have more control if I pay for it myself out of my pocket as I use the service and I feel that I can negotiate a price that I am happy with.

If the town were to contract a full blown leaf removal rate with a contract that would take them whether they were bagged, raked to the curb or whatever, that you didn't feel was appropriately priced there'd be little you could really do about it and that rate would be charged to you in the form of an adjustment to your current local taxes.

So as another point, what if the fee adjustment for your taxes for a bulk garbage removal service amounted to $1.00 a month ($12.00 a year) and you lived in town for five years and moved (for whatever reason)? If you never had any bulk garbage removed you would have paid for a service you never leveraged.

You'd have received NOTHING for your $60.00 (in my example).

I would rather pay as I go / pay as I use myself than to have it pulled in as part of a tax; you quickly lose control otherwise.

But that's just me - how about the rest of the folks out there?

What are your thoughts?

[Mr Freeze]

I am a Wallingford resident and have been for several years.... every year I pay my taxes like everyone else... for the most part I have always felt that they were in line...

but after this year's reval I now wonder. I know many people in town and it appears that most owners will be paying close to $800 more in taxes.... I ask why????

If our budgets up to now have balanced and if we have such a surplus in the town account to keep our triple A+ rating (or whatever it is), why is there such an increase per owner?????

even if you say the average increase is $500; there are approxiamtely 18,000 homes.... do the math... even if you say the $500 increase is only for 10,000 homes and the other 8,000 saw no increase.... this equals $5 million more tax dollars.... where are they GOING????

I'm sorry; I have a good job but my annual increase is 3% or so... where does the average middle income family come up with these additional dollars? especially with the cost of fuel and electricity constantly going up...

I strongly ask every Wallingford resident to think hard during next year's elections... maybe it is time for the old regime to set sail and bring in new blood. People who understand not only the economics of business but the economics of living....

more to come.

[gunderstone]

Great thoughts and I'll add a little to that.

I am all for having a little surplus to set aside for a rainy day but it needs to be limited in size and scope. As a taxpayer I would want a cap to it.

Leverage it when we need it, put back into it when we slip below a certain threshold if it's applicable but I don't want to perpetually fund a surplus. I shouldn't be paying into the town more than it needs in order for it to run properly.

Have a surplus to keep our excellent credit rating and set an additional amount over than for actual use but then cap it and review that level each year. If we need a little more, discuss it - if it makes sense to add to it then vote on that. If somehow we need a little less leave it alone and let the surplus to the surplus stay. Eventually you'll need it again.

Let's remember one thing - you're being taxed to pay for services and town expenses and when you pay a little more to ADD to a SURPLUS you're not realizing representation from that taxation immediately (or in the near term - let's say the immediate following fiscal year)

In this case what occurs if you move out of town or die? Do you or heirs get that overage back? Of course not.

So you've paid for services never utilized - sounds an awful like taxation without representation to me

Tea party anyone?


I FULLY agree with Mr Freeze:

Every Wallingford resident needs to think hard during next year's elections...


If you feel like you're getting the representation you expect from officials you're electing then I suppose you're all set - you can put the same ones back in.

However, if you feel you're not you really NEED to contact the political party you belong to and tell them - run me a full slate of candidates so I have real choice.

Overturning a maximum of three town council seats per election is not effecting voter choice - it’s limiting the voter's options.

I suppose you could argue that over three elections (six years) this could be done but by the time someone is in office this amount of time it's entirely possible for them to become part of the problem you're trying to resolve by turning over the guard.

In my opinion the only way to do that is one clean sweep but Wallingford voters never get that chance.

If the majority of the town of Wallingford thought it was time to turn the entire town council over it cannot be done in a single election UNLESS both parties ran 9 candidates or a mix of mostly full slates come with unaffiliated candidates. With 18 people running, the old nine could be voted out and a new nine could be voted in.

I feel the political parties in town REALLY need to provide this option by each finding 9 candidates that want to run for town council. They should be responsible to provide the voting public this choice.

If the opinion is, voters are content then neither party should have anything to fear - they can run full ballots and the voters will keep their favorites on the council and then nothing changes and then there's no shadow of a doubt.

If the choice is not available then that is limiting the voter's options and if it's being done intentionally it the wrong thing for the people of Wallingford.

Enough of this strategy - it sounds like people saying "you can vote by staying home because staying home is like a "NO" vote"

That's bull - if you want to vote "NO" go out and vote "NO"

If you want to put the same people back in office year after year then good for you but if it’s the result of not having enough available choice then that's really an ugly thing in my opinion.

[UNiRAC]

I am a Wallingford resident and have been for several years.... every year I pay my taxes like everyone else... for the most part I have always felt that they were in line...
but after this year's reval I now wonder. I know many people in town and it appears that most owners will be paying close to $800 more in taxes.... I ask why????.
Good points to all you guys, Meriden is in the same boat [I think] and I've seen Bulk pickups diminish in Meriden and in Big cities [B'port] and Leaf Vaccums STILL in little rich towns [Greenwich,Fairfield,New Cannan]. I know retirees in Fairfield and Milford that recently went thru Reval/Major Tax increases and it hurts! We can consolidate,restructure,improve
[I hope the Connecticut Resourse-Recovery Agency 'Business is legit now that GANIM is gone]. ps: do not use our Condo Dumpster anymore or you'll be sorry. lol:D
ps: see Consolidate and New Haven county 'Threads' elsewhere here