Is Long Island the next Detroit? (New York, Buffalo: go bankrupt, school district, university)

[dcasty]

Originally Posted by majortom1981

Everybody says pension reform but that wont help your taxes. School taxes are the biggest chunk of your taxes. Until school districts combine , taxes wont go down.

I actually don't mind the taxes, for what you get (in a good district), it is well worth the cost if you have a couple of kids in school (compared to private schooling in NYC). Pension plans, however, can break any municipality- life expectancy, payout structure, poor investment returns...underfundedness that never seems to get back above water. This is not EVEN including the other looming nightmare- OPEB (other post employment benefits) which ecompasses things like health insurance.

[BigMike50]

DiNapoli: State Pension Fund Valued At All-Time High Of $160.4 Billion, 5/13/13

Not like Detroit at all

[DogAdvice]

Originally Posted by dcasty

I actually don't mind the taxes, for what you get (in a good district), it is well worth the cost if you have a couple of kids in school (compared to private schooling in NYC).

I completely agree, plus your kid is guaranteed a spot in a school close to your home.

[Interlude]

Originally Posted by BigMike50

DiNapoli: State Pension Fund Valued At All-Time High Of $160.4 Billion, 5/13/13

Not like Detroit at all

Except Detroit has like 10 people left to pay for those pensions instead of the highest concentration of wealth in the country.

[BigMike50]

Originally Posted by Interlude

Except Detroit has like 10 people left to pay for those pensions instead of the highest concentration of wealth in the country.

I hear ya but there's at least a dozen people left in the city. Without going into great detail ....they have/ had the most corrupted leadership and government in the history of the country... Instead of money and contributions going into funds for future payouts in went to line pockets. It took many years but the roosters have come home to roost.

I wouldn't compare Detroit to NYC or Michigan to NY...

Some cities thought they can beat the system and roll the dice on future pension payouts and when it comes up snake eyes they want a bailout or want to claim bankruptcy Luckily NY was smarter then this and is in very very very good shape

[VA Yankee]

Lets be carefull how we throw stones, there was a time that NYC was on the brink of fileing for bankruptcy back in 75.
Recalling New York at the Brink of Bankruptcy - NYTimes.com

[ThinkingElsewhere]

Is Long Island's economy dependent on auto companies that make junk cars? No. There is your answer.

[VA Yankee]

Originally Posted by ThinkingElsewhere

Is Long Island's economy dependent on auto companies that make junk cars? No. There is your answer.

Real insightful, is Long island crippled by excessive union & pension obligations....yes.

[bigjretrac]

Wait, let's define what we mean by being the next Detroit. Are we talking about Long Island going bankrupt, or Long Islald becoming blighted?

[ClarkStreetKid]

Originally Posted by ThinkingElsewhere

Is Long Island's economy dependent on auto companies that make junk cars? No. There is your answer.

And what is Long Island's economy currently dependent on?