AH Subsidies on Wilmette Agenda

Two Wilmette trustees up for reelection, Joanne Aggens and Mari Terman, vote to put taxpayers on the hook for major ongoing subsidies to create "affordable housing". Wilmette Life:

Members of the board's Finance Committee voted 3-0 recently to accept a level of housing affordable by a family making 80 percent of area median family income instead of 100 percent, as earlier envisioned.

Finance Committee members Mari Terman and Joanne Aggens backed the new level, after members of the Housing Commission supported it at a recent meeting.

Chairwoman Lali Watt opposed it, maintaining it would be hard to get developers to build new housing at that level without significant subsidy. But when her two fellow trustees voted for the lower level, she immediately joined them.

The same issue of the Wilmette Life talks about hefty property taxes affecting homeowners, some of whom may be in danger of losing their homes. "Affordable housing" would help very few and is economically unsustainable around here without subsidies, given land prices. And the taxes to fund that will push out some seniors and young families who have worked hard and stretched their own resources to live in the community.

All three challengers for village trustee Basil, Spillers and Teschendorf (can't find websites for the two guys) are on record as being opposed to taxing residents for affordable housing. In addition, Basil is opposed to the higher vehicle sticker fee for select green cars:

The Village Board should "stop attempting to micromanage the affairs of our lives by imposing higher taxes on the choice of car you drive, because you don't choose the one the Village Board prefers," maintained Mike Basil, who's running, along with Aggens, Terman and two others, for one of three seats in the April 17 election.

"Instead of mandating what kind of lawn equipment to use, and what time of day to use it, instead of mandating or attempting to control what you do with your trees on your private property," trustees should let residents make more of their own decisions, he said.

The next village board meeting is Tuesday, April 10th, when the Finance Committee will report to the full board. The election is the following Tuesday the 17th.

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UPDATE: Wilmette Life endorses two tax and spenders, and one moderate, Karen Spillers. (Their Terman endorsement is contradicted by their own story above, where she essentially votes for taxes. If you don't believe me, believe Lali the liberal who says so bluntly.) The village needs common sense, not higher taxes.