http://wkbn.com/2017/12/26/councilwoman-no-tax-breaks-for-youngstown-sewer-projects/
If your councilmember voted NO, call him/her and voice your disapproval for not supporting Councilwoman McNally.
Sorry folks, but the Councilwoman is wrong on this one.
The most significant problem with Youngstown's sewer fund is the declining customer base. The advantage of granting tap-in fee waivers to worthy projects is that is brings more users into the system, thereby distributing operational costs over a larger user base.
It is well worth a couple of thousand dollars up front in order to bring years of monthly payments into the system.
I do agree that the practice should only be used for larger sustainable projects that have the potential of being around for years to come.
So an $800,000 project can't afford to pay a $2,400 sewer tap-in fee. :P
Affordability is irrelevant. This is a well-know business concept know as incentivizing business development. It is a topic of which most Youngstowners have a backward or no understanding at all.
For example, Could V&M have afforded to do its mill expansion project without the $20 million worth of state and local incentives it received? Probably so, but it would have not been built in this area had the state and local governments not offered an attractive incentive package. The trade-off? A strategic decision that the long-term gain would outweigh the initial cost of incentives.
On a much smaller scale, of course, this current project is no different. A no-build in Youngstown produces zero benefits for the wastewater system and its users. Conversely, the approx. $2,000 in initial fee waiver will be recouped in less that 2 years through the payment of ongoing wastewater user fees. It's all about spreading the fixed costs of operating the system over a larger user base. Can we all say "Economy of Scale"???
This is not about giving wastewater funds away. It is all about applying an ongoing strategy that reduces the per user burden of operating the system.
If Mrs. Councilwoman McNally cannot see the overall benefit of such a strategy, she certainly has not earned my vote in future elections.