Yosemite Pam
I know the community has had a big turn around in the last few years especially in the City. I also know that the school board continues to receive grief for their actions. I think PATA served its purpose over the last few years in that it exposed some of the problems going on in our local governments. However PATA did that by inflaming the citizenry with unfounded rhetoric that in some cases was not factual.
If you review the PATA newsletters of say 2001 a number of comments and positions taken there were both biased and inaccurate. One example; was that the City should tear up the pre-annexation agreements because in the mind of the author of that newsletter they were illegal contracts. I could go on with debt level and Pickerington Ponds as other examples of inflammatory rhetoric. But at this late date I want to leave it alone. Clearly in 1999 and 2000 our City government did move is a strange direction and mostly to the benefit of the residential builders. As a result of this PATA site and newsletter it did bring those issues to light and the city residents did elect a new majority in 2003 and they started 2004 with a whole new attitude. In addition, in 2002 the Citizens did overwhelming support the two lots per acre and emergency initiatives and that in itself has stopped new residential platting.
The final piece of this puzzle will be a merger between the City of Pickerington and the remaining parts of Violet Township that are in the PLSD. I am sure most that live in the township and that have just read the proceeding sentence are seeing red right now.
One big stumbling block to a merger is the taxes paid by the City taxpayers. Everyone you speak with in township seems to be opposed to a merger based on Pataskala and the City income taxes.
So maybe the next step in this process is for the Township and the City governments to get together to impose some tax REFORM and to work together to make that all happen.
Basically to make the City (tax wise) more attractive to a merger should be the goal.
Ohhhh! the debt; we in the Township don?’t want to take on all of that City debt. If a City tax reform actually lowered your tax load (after a merger) would you be less concerned about that City debt?
I hope this will fire them up.
I know the community has had a big turn around in the last few years especially in the City. I also know that the school board continues to receive grief for their actions. I think PATA served its purpose over the last few years in that it exposed some of the problems going on in our local governments. However PATA did that by inflaming the citizenry with unfounded rhetoric that in some cases was not factual.
If you review the PATA newsletters of say 2001 a number of comments and positions taken there were both biased and inaccurate. One example; was that the City should tear up the pre-annexation agreements because in the mind of the author of that newsletter they were illegal contracts. I could go on with debt level and Pickerington Ponds as other examples of inflammatory rhetoric. But at this late date I want to leave it alone. Clearly in 1999 and 2000 our City government did move is a strange direction and mostly to the benefit of the residential builders. As a result of this PATA site and newsletter it did bring those issues to light and the city residents did elect a new majority in 2003 and they started 2004 with a whole new attitude. In addition, in 2002 the Citizens did overwhelming support the two lots per acre and emergency initiatives and that in itself has stopped new residential platting.
The final piece of this puzzle will be a merger between the City of Pickerington and the remaining parts of Violet Township that are in the PLSD. I am sure most that live in the township and that have just read the proceeding sentence are seeing red right now.
One big stumbling block to a merger is the taxes paid by the City taxpayers. Everyone you speak with in township seems to be opposed to a merger based on Pataskala and the City income taxes.
So maybe the next step in this process is for the Township and the City governments to get together to impose some tax REFORM and to work together to make that all happen.
Basically to make the City (tax wise) more attractive to a merger should be the goal.
Ohhhh! the debt; we in the Township don?’t want to take on all of that City debt. If a City tax reform actually lowered your tax load (after a merger) would you be less concerned about that City debt?
I hope this will fire them up.
