Robbing Wilmette

At a public hearing of the village Finance Committee last week, Wilmette gas station owners spoke up against a proposed 2 cent per gallon gas tax, pointing out that after their costs and the expense of credit card fees they only net 6 cents a gallon, and that people drive "inordinate distances to get cheaper gas." The committee is now recommending a tax of 1 cent per gallon, along with increases in vehicle sticker fees from $50 to $75 (with a break for "green cars"). And there's more:

In addition to the stickers and the fuel tax, more new fees may be on the way. In 2008, the village plans to discuss hiking the real estate transfer tax, now set at $3 per $1,000. Also planned is a "road degradation fee," a charge against firms that dig holes in the streets to connect infrastructure to developments, even when they fill them in again.

And then there's the teardown tax, which merits a separate story in the Wilmette Life.

Here's what a new resident had to say at the Finance Committee hearing, obviously driven to get involved as a citizen right off the bat:

New resident Carol Saunders Harbaugh came to the podium last week just to say that after living in five other states, she was amazed, after one month, at how expensive it was to live in Illinois, the state with more units of government than any other. She said she had paid bills she never was asked to pay before, including public school book fees. "Never in my life have I seen a place that has so much taxes," she said. "Never have I seen governments that spend so much money.

Quite a reality check. But maybe it's the village of Wilmette that needs a reality check. According to a study released this week by the Civic Federation, municipalities in northeastern Illinois are spending at a rate almost double that of revenue from FY2000-FY2003, this despite revenue jumping by nearly 8% during the same period. Sun Times:

"This is a much larger gap than we've seen in previous studies of expenditures and revenues," Civic Federation President Laurence Msall said.
"The financial condition of local governments across northeastern Illinois is likely to get worse before it gets better unless government officials work to rein in spending," he said......

He added that much of the increased spending, especially in Cook County, is going toward generous pension and health care benefits that are out of line with the private sector.

While the knee-jerk response may be to raise taxes, the federation points out the best solution to the unsustainable level of expenses is to CUT SPENDING. Elected trustees need to consider the unintended consequences of this ruinous taxation---pricing seniors out of their homes, pricing young families and single moms out of the housing market, competing with local schools for tax dollars. And of course, one of the purported reasons for the teardown tax is to subsidize housing for village employees. Company towns went out of style over a century ago, but aside from that, a more efficient approach would be to raise the salaries of village employees, so they can buy their own housing, or whatever else they choose to spend their money on. Yet the Sun Times article points out that local government employees are already receiving benefits more generous than the private sector.

This is not a time to be building high rises in the village center in the elusive search for sales tax nirvana, causing our streets to be choked with traffic, our roads pounded by heavy use, and our neighborhood schools overburdened with major new enrollment. (By the way, "green" cars also tear up the streets and take up parking spaces for less $$. People are parking free already on Wilmette Ave., choking it up at key points.)

Does anyone agree with the village consultants that Wilmette is underdeveloped?

We are a landlocked older community with charmingly narrow cobbled streets, a leafy canopy of trees, and lovely homes, old and new. Wilmette is very livable now, but for how long?

I would suggest again, a Modest Proposal. And do not overburden our mom and pop retailers with sales taxes, many here for two or three generations. These businesses support our local charities, school fundraisers, and youth sports teams, aside from the taxes they pay.

The village of Wilmette is not living within its means, and is recklessly risking the future of our community, and robbing Wilmette of its unique character.

The vote on the teardown tax and possibly more (the agenda is not yet posted---the Green Bay Rd. development has been given a 2nd chance and is still pending) by village trustees will be at their next meeting this Tuesday, Sept. 26th, Village Hall. Numerous residents have written to me on these issues. Please write your trustees as well, and if you can, go to the meetings.