The City of Evanston continues to waste taxpayer money on affordable housing efforts with little real results. Why are so many homes on the west side of Evanston in foreclosure? Why as the number of section eight vouchers dropped here by almost half in five years?
The answer to all this is the city of Evanston has one of the highest tax effective tax rates around. The city keeps on telling people they are in the middle. When you combine in all the other fees and taxes here Evanston is near the top. Evanston increased its budget 15% this year, by raising property taxes and fees. This is hardly affordable – and the effect is not even to be felt yet. Interesting – the average taxpayer will be seeing high energy cost here on natural gas worst than past years – who will profit? The city of evanston taxes our natural gas so this winter when the poor in town can not pay will the council care? Or the alderperson want more taxes for affordable housing?
Water bills here are nothing but taxes. Remember last summer a women on greenbay road died in her house – the water was shut off. Yet the city did not take her out. She died of heart problems. Did the city cause this? Better yet how did the council close this year budget? Added more cost to the water bills.Years ago I remember over 10% of the bills were not paid – I have to wonder what is going on now?
Then we have one genius council member who wants to take people homes from them that are in foreclosure or by nusiance ordinance and turn them into affordable housing. How does he propose to make this work? How many times have the groups involved with affordable housing come back to the council asking for more funds to cover up screw ups? What have our council members done – keep on funding them.
How can anyone in this so called affordable housing live here with the every increasing taxes? If they are on such a thin budget and the city keeps on raising taxes?
It is better to shut down the affordable housing programs and layoff the city employees involved and put the funds to lower taxes – Clearly this is a better use of funds.