Here is how Team Gary is building the city’s tax base: Larry Webb had purchased one of the many abandoned schools for the Gary Community School System. He bought it fair and square from them. He got preliminary approval to use the site for his charter bus business. But when a few individuals began to complain about him breathing some life into the previously dead building, Team Gary stepped in. But they didn’t step in to smooth things over with the couple of residents that had a beef with him locating his longtime Gary business to the former school, they orchestrated an alternative location for him. They shooed him down the road to the former Ford dealership. But this was only a temporary arrangement to quiet a few complaining voters. When it came time to make a more permanent arrangement with Webb, the city changed their tune; they reneged on the deal. So we had Webb willing to pay taxes on the former school site on 23rd. We had the Ford dealership paying taxes religiously on the Grant St. site. But now, thanks to Team Gary (most particularly thanks to Forest Hayes), now we have Webb abandoning the School site on 23rd completely, and in the process of folding up his operation at the Ford dealership site. He said he is leaving the city for good. So now the city will no longer receive taxes on either site, because to facilitate Webb’s need to move to the Ford dealership site, the city got the property given to them by Ford. However, to get the property for nothing, they had to agree to some very onerous deed restrictions, which make the property all but worthless. It could even be said to have a negative value due to these deed restrictions and due to its condition and environmental problems. So thanks to Team Gary, two large parcels of commercial property have been removed from the tax base. This is not how to expand the tax base. These are only two examples of her team subtracting from then tax base. There are plenty more!
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 15:02:34 +0000
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