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Paul, not a knock against you, but it's pretty sad when someone from Pittson Township has better economic ideas for Scranton than it's own elected leaders. That is a knock against the mayor and the Doherty Three. You already mentioned getting rid of that silly wage tax, that our short-sighted mayor just can't let go of and you probably have other ideas up your sleeve. Why can't the mayor and his cohorts come up with a viable, long term fiscally sound plan for the city instead of dumping money blindly into a park and an over-rated downtown? I think he doesn't care, he really doesn't want to be mayor and he's using this as a platform for higher office in the state. In the meantime, the city is suffering and will continue to as long as he's in office.
Scranton's biggest WEAKNESS if I were to do a traditional "SWOT" analysis of it would be its 3.4% wage tax (2.4% of which goes into the city's coffers with the balance going to the Scranton School District). Just look at this forum as a prime example. Since I joined in mid-2006 I can rattle off at least TWO middle-to-upper-middle-class members who were poised to move into the Electric City but reset their sights upon the suburbs when they learned of that Draconian wage tax. I mean, if you were earning $100,000 per year or $50,000 per year, would you want to automatically send $3,400 or $1,700, respectively, of your hard-earned cash right into the city's coffers (on top of the property taxes) when you could just move to a nearby place like Clarks Summit, Dunmore, or Pittston and pay much less? If Scranton shelves its wage tax, it WILL be able to attract more prospective new residents, helping to stabilize its decades-long erosion of its tax base. A city that shows population growth will also be more likely to attract new private investment from developers and businesses as well.
By the way, some of Scranton's own residents DO have solid ideas. Last night I wanted to just HUG several "regulars" for not only being civilized, but also for FINALLY being CONSTRUCTIVE instead of just a hindrance. Ozzie Quinn himself even informed council of a forgotten-about master plan for East Mountain that would open up a large chunk of land for new residential development (i.e. more tax $$$). Someone also recommended that the wage tax be reduced as well as SIDEWALKS being replaced/repaired using the proposed stimulus package coming in from President Obama. You can put as much "lipstick" on a pig as you'd like, but until the wage tax is shelved, it will all be for naught.
Just because there are empty storefronts and office space downtown does not make Scranton some sort of hellhole. Its a great place to live, although the politics stink.
Agreed but we have been spoon fed this idea that we are a booming city, I think that the mayor was quoted as saying "We are a 24 hour a day city and people are going to want to move here", but they aren't and they won't.
This is not about the neighborhoods and whether or not the city is a good place to live, this is about the downtown and solely the downtown.
The facade of media stories that has people believing that the mayor has turned the city around....
Close to 50 empty retail/office spaces in the downtown and I'm sure that I missed some and we are spending close to $60,000,000 in taxpayer dollars to build two new structures for retail and office space in an empty downtown. Hell they are both right around the corner from the STILL EMPTY SOUTHERN UNION, the crown jewel of downtown office space that was recently sold at an $11,000,000 loss.
Doherty should be a magician, because he's the master of using smoke and mirrors. How could anyone think we need to build more retail and office space downtown?? If anything, they should just start knocking buildings down to create green space or something. We don't need the same amount of buildings downtown as Scranton had when it had double the population and people had no cars.
Paul the same can be said for the mercantile tax with any business. Its a 3.0% tax for the priviledge of operating a business in the city of Scranton.
Business Privilege Tax - 6.13 Mils
Any for-profit, Scranton-based business that provides a service or receives payment for an exchange of talent must pay a business privilege tax at a rate of 6.13 mils (5.13 mils to school district + 1.00 mil to the City), which amounts to $6.13 for every $1,000 of gross receipts. This is based on the previous year’s gross sales.
In general, taxable activity includes any trade, business, profession, vocation, service, construction, communication, commercial activity, or financial business of interstate or intrastate character that is carried on in Scranton or controlled from a Scranton location.
A person who engages in a taxable activity in Scranton is subject to the tax whether or not he/she is a resident and whether or not he/she has a permanent place of business within the City. A foreign corporation is subject to this tax if it carries on a taxable activity in Scranton, whether or not it is licensed to do business in Pennsylvania.
Dickson City imposes a similar tax at 1.5 mils, or $1.50 per $1,000 of gross receipts.
Earned Income Tax
The amount an individual pays in local wage taxes is determined by his/her place of residence. This tax is imposed upon salaries, wages, commissions, and other compensation earned by individuals and upon net profits earned from all business and other activities relating to earned income. Wage taxes are limited to 1% of total compensation (0.5% to the municipality and 0.5% to the school district) in all Lackawanna County communities except the City of Scranton and the City of Carbondale. Scrantonians pay a 3.4% wage tax (2.4% to the city and 1% to the school district) and residents of Carbondale pay 1.75%.
Mercantile Tax
A few Lackawanna County communities impose mercantile taxes on persons, firms and entities engaged in business as dealers of wholesale and retail goods, wares and merchandise. The tax is based on annual gross receipts for the previous year and is levied on retail and wholesale businesses in Scranton and Dickson City.
I don't have any connection with downtown Scranton. I enjoy visiting cities. I've done it almost all of my life. I understand how natives are protective of their surroundings. As an objective person, walking the streets, I had a glimpse of the situation. My first impression of Scranton is similar to other towns that have been "passed by." There's no getting around it. The proof is "door to door!" And if Paul or others continue praise it, well, I understand that, but it does not change my experience.
I heard from those who have flown over Pennsylvania comment on the big scar! (coal mining region) I never took that kind of flight. I did however fly from NYC to Buffalo and back. The finger lakes and wine country was beautiful.
To hear of "booming city" attached to Scranton makes me wonder who is drinking the Kool Aid!
Scranton's biggest WEAKNESS if I were to do a traditional "SWOT" analysis of it would be its 3.4% wage tax (2.4% of which goes into the city's coffers with the balance going to the Scranton School District). Just look at this forum as a prime example. Since I joined in mid-2006 I can rattle off at least TWO middle-to-upper-middle-class members who were poised to move into the Electric City but reset their sights upon the suburbs when they learned of that Draconian wage tax. I mean, if you were earning $100,000 per year or $50,000 per year, would you want to automatically send $3,400 or $1,700, respectively, of your hard-earned cash right into the city's coffers (on top of the property taxes) when you could just move to a nearby place like Clarks Summit, Dunmore, or Pittston and pay much less? If Scranton shelves its wage tax, it WILL be able to attract more prospective new residents, helping to stabilize its decades-long erosion of its tax base. A city that shows population growth will also be more likely to attract new private investment from developers and businesses as well.
By the way, some of Scranton's own residents DO have solid ideas. Last night I wanted to just HUG several "regulars" for not only being civilized, but also for FINALLY being CONSTRUCTIVE instead of just a hindrance. Ozzie Quinn himself even informed council of a forgotten-about master plan for East Mountain that would open up a large chunk of land for new residential development (i.e. more tax $$$). Someone also recommended that the wage tax be reduced as well as SIDEWALKS being replaced/repaired using the proposed stimulus package coming in from President Obama. You can put as much "lipstick" on a pig as you'd like, but until the wage tax is shelved, it will all be for naught.
Yes, that is I why I will save that money when I move. I get $23.76 taken out of my check weekly for that wage tax. That comes to $1,236 a year, for what? I don't see the quality of living being any better than any where else I go in the region. Getting rid of that wage tax would be a start to getting the city back on the right track financially.
I don't have any connection with downtown Scranton. I enjoy visiting cities. I've done it almost all of my life. I understand how natives are protective of their surroundings. As an objective person, walking the streets, I had a glimpse of the situation. My first impression of Scranton is similar to other towns that have been "passed by." There's no getting around it. The proof is "door to door!" And if Paul or others continue praise it, well, I understand that, but it does not change my experience.
I heard from those who have flown over Pennsylvania comment on the big scar! (coal mining region) I never took that kind of flight. I did however fly from NYC to Buffalo and back. The finger lakes and wine country was beautiful.
To hear of "booming city" attached to Scranton makes me wonder who is drinking the Kool Aid!
It's not a booming city. That is the propaganda the local media creates because they're buddies with the mayor. Anyone with a set of two good eyes and who lives here and sees it everyday knows the truth. We wouldn't knock it so bad, if people didn't build it up so much. Go phillies made a good point, why do we need more retail/office space when no one is moving into the empty spaces the city has now? The population is shrinking and there isn't enough people here to support these businesses. Until the city gets rid of the oppressive mercantile and wage taxes that are in place now, the population won't get bigger and companies won't want to move here.
Well, Ed, for the past several years Scranton/Wilkes-Barre as a whole HAVE been growing again for the first time in many decades. Now we just have to give them reasons to move into Scranton (instead of South Abington or Roaring Brook), Pittston (instead of Pittston Twp.), Wilkes-Barre (instead of the Back Mountain or Mountain Top), etc.
I took a walk to the Diner for breakfast and walked across the street to the Bloomsburg Town Hall.
This was my first visit, so I quietly walked throughout the building, taking photos before meeting anyone.
I found some old postcards under glass. Here are the trolleys that used to run here.
That was "yesterday." Here is today, uh...this morning!
Raised in the city/town I saw potential with the housing boom yet that came with a large price to the city. With friends and family in the area, I visit the area often.
It's a shame that local politicians are continuing to believe that funding large scale development at the price of the citizens (who are already struggling within the city) while so very many buildings remain empty in prime locations remains the standard procedure.
Scranton is far from alone in this. See Philly, NYC, and any other smaller city areas on the east coast and chances are you will see the same thing.
The point is both political AND action oriented. Make your voices heard politically, become more involved than taking shots if you are not already. Organize yourselves or there is no point in complaining about the potential that WILL be lost.
To the orig poster: Please consider sending your writing to all editorial papers in the area. It should be printed in at least a couple of them as I'm sure it represents much of the legitimate viewpoint that many Scrantonians have in their minds.
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If Scranton shelves its wage tax, it WILL be able to attract more prospective new residents, helping to stabilize its decades-long erosion of its tax base. A city that shows population growth will also be more likely to attract new private investment from developers and businesses as well.
Objective opinion....
