City taxes in Baltimore/Ellicott City

[mrboltonman]

We really need to start protesting to the city government because Baltimore City is outrageous with taxes.

[jason2713]

Originally Posted by mrboltonman

We really need to start protesting to the city government because Baltimore City is outrageous with taxes.

Lot of good that will do, we need more conservatives/moderates that believe in free market, cutting taxes, and privatizing a lot of services. Oh well.

[mrboltonman]

I think it would bring more attention to the issue but a lot of people will take the attitude of not caring or thinking it will matter so it will be difficult to get anything done.

We are spending thousands of dollars and they are just getting wasted our money. It would be interesting to get a group of people together and protest what's going on. I have heard great and common sense solutions on this site that need to be pushed at the city government level.

[jason2713]

Originally Posted by mrboltonman

I think it would bring more attention to the issue but a lot of people will take the attitude of not caring or thinking it will matter so it will be difficult to get anything done.

We are spending thousands of dollars and they are just getting wasted our money. It would be interesting to get a group of people together and protest what's going on. I have heard great and common sense solutions on this site that need to be pushed at the city government level.

sign me up, I'll be the loudest one. city taxes are outrageous, but we have so many hand outs and illegals, and we are already in the red, no way they are cutting tax.

[jonjj]

Originally Posted by jason2713

sign me up, I'll be the loudest one. city taxes are outrageous, but we have so many hand outs and illegals, and we are already in the red, no way they are cutting tax.

Maybe petitions are in order stating that once the rebound starts (hopefully 2010), taxes are cut back to a reasonable level. By reasonable, take the 50 largest cities and find the medium--new tax rates.

[HandsUpThumbsDown]

The reason that Baltimore's property tax is so high is that there are 600,000 people living in a city built for 1,000,000. There are so many more miles of roads, piping, etc. than are necessary for our population. That's the short of it.

So we need to leave out the usual racist-tinged rhetoric about freeloaders, crime, liberals v. conservatives etc. and find a real way to get people to return to the city.

There are a lot of young people who come here out of college for their first job but many of them vacate as soon as they get their second. Why? Well, this is a very cheap place to buy a house but, as has been established, taxes are high. You don't feel like you get a good return on investment for your taxes in Baltimore City. You are wary to send your kids to failing schools. There isn't much viable transit.

So there's your focus. Regardless of party affiliation, a great deal of effort needs to be made to bring people into the city. Positive population growth will mean lower taxes.

Maybe people would be more willing to stay here if the attitude of people wasn't so pessimistic and self-loathing. This is a great city with a great number of problems. Take a look at some of the other forums on this website - most cities' posts have some element of civic pride. Baltimore could learn a thing or two from that.

[mrboltonman]

I like the idea of petitions and it wouldn't be that hard to do.

[jason2713]

Originally Posted by HandsUpThumbsDown

The reason that Baltimore's property tax is so high is that there are 600,000 people living in a city built for 1,000,000. There are so many more miles of roads, piping, etc. than are necessary for our population. That's the short of it.

Didn't know that. Interesting fact, if it's true.

Originally Posted by HandsUpThumbsDown

So we need to leave out the usual racist-tinged rhetoric about freeloaders, crime, liberals v. conservatives etc. and find a real way to get people to return to the city.

We are a sanctuary state, that's a fact. My ex's parents became citizens the correct way, scraping every penny and taking the years upon years to do it the right way. It's a slap in the face to them and all the others that worked hard and do it LEGALLY.

We are all paying for the "turn the cheek the other way" policies. Period. Racist? No! I want everyone to pay their fair share of taxes who use the gov't services. Get them to pay taxes, I have no problem with them being here. That's the only problem with this entire situation. Hispanics are typically very family oriented, very religious, hard working, and just good people in general. Bad apples are among all different races, so I won't single them out for that.

Originally Posted by HandsUpThumbsDown

There are a lot of young people who come here out of college for their first job but many of them vacate as soon as they get their second. Why? Well, this is a very cheap place to buy a house but, as has been established, taxes are high. You don't feel like you get a good return on investment for your taxes in Baltimore City. You are wary to send your kids to failing schools. There isn't much viable transit.

Agreed. I also moved here to avoid the 25 DUIs I'd get driving after going to Canton or Fells bars haha!

Originally Posted by HandsUpThumbsDown

So there's your focus. Regardless of party affiliation, a great deal of effort needs to be made to bring people into the city. Positive population growth will mean lower taxes.

The people don't need to make the first move, that's the role of the gov't. They are the leaders of our state...leaders...so lead already! Give people a reason to come to the city and they will. And 18 murders in 16 days isn't exactly a selling point. Period.

Originally Posted by HandsUpThumbsDown

Maybe people would be more willing to stay here if the attitude of people wasn't so pessimistic and self-loathing. This is a great city with a great number of problems. Take a look at some of the other forums on this website - most cities' posts have some element of civic pride. Baltimore could learn a thing or two from that.

Probably why I won't stay in Baltimore much longer. The "good" parts of the city are fun, but to live here full time requires just too much effort, costs a lot, and the negative outweighs the good. For every positive, I can list 2-3 negatives. That's hard to have "civic pride" over.