One of the problems with electing business executives to the city council is that they often favor businesses over ordinary residents, such as voting for the $3.5 million DES building giveaway, which would cost everyone more in property tax while benefiting only a few.
Even worse was the effort by telephone companies several years ago to eliminate property taxes on telephone facilities so that everyone else would pay more. When this failed in the Legislature, they created a bogus “Municipal Property Tax Recovery Fee,” which charged nearly all users 99 cents per month instead of charging more to the big users that required the expensive equipment.
If you live in Ward 2, ask Erle Pierce how he was involved in this. Does he still feel telephone equipment should be exempt from property taxes, and what other businesses should get similar exemptions? Does he believe that minimal users of city services such as water should pay the same monthly amount as heavier users? If you don’t like his answers, you don’t have to vote for him. You can write in yourself, your most persuasive neighbor, Allan Herschlag, or leave the spot blank.
ROY SCHWEIKER
Concord