Pouring $1,000,000+ of Your Tax Dollars Into the Ground
Lexington's City Council is debating whether to accept a state grant to build sidewalks on Tates Creek Road.
In an act of media oversimplification, the Herald-Leader opined recently that such a choice should be a no-brainer.
Unfortunately, not thinking is precisely the problem.
We like sidewalks. But this project is another example of poor planning and misplaced priorities.
The project will cost the city $200,000 to match an$800,000 state grant. Some important issues that were not planned for and are not covered in the cost of the grant are:
- relocating 100 utility poles
- purchasing additional right-of-way
- relocating water lines for fire hydrants
- removing some very old trees on homeowners property
Has either the state or the city actually analyzed the costs involved? No.
So here's a $200,000 budget item that will balloon into more spending as these additional costs are encountered, all for a project the residents of the road frankly do not want.
--Not to mention $800,000 in state transportation funds that could also serve a better purpose.
Meanwhile the city is struggling to pay for firefighters and police, has a parks system in need of repair, plenty of potholes left over from the ice storm...We can think of plenty of ways to spend it better.
This is a small but important battle against wasteful spending. At 7:00 PM tonight 6/11, the council will meet at City Hall, and we encourage you to attend to speak against this proposal.
If you can't make the trip, or even if you can, contact the council. You can email all the council members at once via councilmembers@lfucg.com, or go here for their individual contact information.
Thanks for your action. It shouldn't take this much work to protect our tax dollars, but sometimes it does.
