by Judy Frank
posted June 26, 2008
East Ridge officials – who are proposing a 37-cent property tax increase – delayed action on the city’s 2008-2009 budget and revenue ordinances Thursday night after City Manager Curtis Adams said he needs more time to work on them.
But that didn’t stop residents opposed to the increase from letting their elected leaders know how unhappy they are about the prospect of higher taxes.
Dot Guinn told council members that she has lived at 1322 Orlando for the past 55 years, and that her current income falls below the poverty level.
“When you have paid taxes on a piece of property for 50 years and you are more than 80 years old, you ought to be exempt from paying property taxes,” she said, winning enthusiastic applause from the audience.
In order to keep the town operating, council members adopted a continuing budget that will maintain the status quo “until such time as the 2008-2009 budget is approved.”
The city manager said a budget workshop – which will be open to the public – will be held on Saturday, July 12, starting at 9 a.m.
During Thursday’s meeting one man spoke up in support of the proposed property tax increase, even suggesting that it be 40 cents rather than 37 cents “to give us a little bit of a cushion.” If the town is to progress, he said, it must have revenue.
But others were unpersuaded. Why, they wondered, do political leaders invariably respond to the need for more money by raising property taxes?
“There ought to be another way to raise money, not just property taxes,” one woman said. “Renters in this town don’t pay anything except their rent . . . Property owners shouldn’t have to pay for everything.”
In other action, council member Denny Manning, whose current term expires in November, demanded to know why Mr. Adams had ordered town employees to remove his election signs from the East Ridge tunnel.
Mr. Adams said the action was taken because the Tennessee Department of Transportation contacted the town and asked that all signs be removed from the state’s right of way around the tunnel because they distract drivers, block lines of sight and endanger public safety.
At the request of the council, the city manager said he will write to all candidates seeking public office who may put up signs in the East Ridge area and notify them that DOT does not want any political signs placed in the state’s right of way at both ends of the tunnel.
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