Here’s the Friday open comments post.
Today’s suggested topic is no single topic at all — just a forum for your comments or questions. I’ll try to answer questions as quickly as I can.
The use of pseudonyms and anonymous postings are, of course, fine.
Although the comments template has a space for a name, email address, and website, those who want to leave a field blank can do so. Comments will be moderated, against profanity or trolls. Otherwise, have at it.
I’ll keep the post open through Monday afternoon.
Hello John Adams,
I have a question for you about the economy. In your posts you often point out the bad economy. It is a bad economy and it doesn’t look like it’s getting better. But isn’t that a problem for our whole country? When you mention that the Whitewater city manager (Kevin Brunner) has made economic mistakes, many of those problems are ones that come from a recession everywhere and not just Whitewater. Almost no one saw this recession coming until it was too late.
How can that be one person’s fault? If economists didn’t see this recession coming how can the problems from it be the fault of one person?
Thanks for your posts on cat haters. You should have cat blogging again, but at least you’re showing how evil cat haters really are. Thank you for defending cats.
Cat Lover —
You’re welcome. Cats are naturally independent, curious, and sharp-looking. Some of the greatest Americans, including Lincoln and Twain, really liked cats.
You may be interested to know that the English witch who threw a cat in a trash bin applied for, and was granted, stress leave from her job. Although she shouldn’t be working around normal people anyway, I think the employer was too soft with her. A leave like that should be granted when the employee has difficulties through no fault of her own. She was responsible for abusing the cat, and stupidly assuming she wouldn’t get detected in a country that has security cameras all over the place. (The English are nuts for video cameras, something I find particularly odd, as they’re not a photogenic people.)
Anonymous —
It’s hurricane season, and that brings to mind an analogy. Although a hurricane may strike a wide area, some homeowners will be more prudent in preparations than others. It’s a tragedy for anyone affected, but it may be possible through prudence to endure more safely the influence of the storm. All Wisconsin has experienced a recession, but not all Wisconsin communities have felt the same harmful power of that recession.
Tax incremental financing — a fiasco for Whitewater — is a good example of how fiscal problems are particularly local, not general.
Although all Wisconsin towns have felt the recession, and many have tax incremental districts, only a small minority of tax incremental districts will need to seek distressed status. (I will be discuss this in a posts or posts next week.)
Although Whitewater touts herself as an ‘exceptional’ community, that’s not always a good thing.
Predictable, indeed – I saw tonight (9/3) that there will be a City of Whitewater public meeting in TID distressed status. I may wait to write about Whitewater’s TIF situation until after that meeting. Here’s the notice:
Public Hearing Notice on TID 4 Distressed TID Project Plan Amendment
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Community Development Authority of the City of Whitewater will hold a public hearing on September 27, 2010, at 4:30 p.m. at the City of Whitewater Municipal Building Community Room located at 312 West Whitewater Street, Whitewater, Wisconsin, for the purpose of providing the community a reasonable opportunity to comment upon the proposed Project Plan Amendment for designation of Tax Incremental District No. 4 as a distressed Tax Incremental District within the City of Whitewater, Wisconsin. The public is hereby notified that the life of a distressed tax incremental district may be extended, that it may receive excess tax increments from a donor district, and that the life of the donor district may be extended to provide such increments. The cost of the amendment will include additional staff time, additional interest costs, bond refinancing and underwriting fees, publication costs, and additional Department of Revenue administration charges. All interested parties will be given a reasonable opportunity to express their views on the proposed amendment. A copy of the Project Plan Amendment will be available for viewing at the offices of the City Clerk located at 312 West Whitewater Street, Whitewater, Wisconsin, during normal business hours and will be provided upon request. Such hearing shall be public and citizens and interested parties shall then be heard.
Mary S. Nimm, Coordinator,
City of Whitewater Community
Development Authority
312 West Whitewater Street
P. O. Box 178
Whitewater, WI 53190