Arlington County Manager presented the FY14 Budget to the County Board yesterday. Basically ignored any effects of federal cutbacks and Arlington's budget cuts due to real estate tax shortfalls will largely come from essential services, with a 3.9% increase in taxes and fees for homeowners. No word on the schools budget yet and how much the school system will need. The County Board goes on pretending it's 2003 and that the Feds are going to keep printing money to fight wars in the Third World, when the reverse is happening. Only County Board Member who recognized that the County is going to get fiscally and economically slammed by federal employee furloughs and loss of contractor employment was Mary Hynes.
No significant cutbacks to the County Board's pet projects, streetcars, sports, entertainment, recreation. Oh, the Artisphere's budget is being cut 50% so the performing arts groups who use the Artisphere are going to have to finally resort to philanthropy.
This is what we get for electing and re-electing people, like Jay Fisette, with a "party's over here" mindset who live in a bubble.
Thanks for your blog.
Tom, 22205
39 comments:
County Manager refuses to move to Arlington from Fairfax County no matter how much the County Board pays her.
County Board is completely irresponsible, cutting funds for essential senior and schools healthcare and fire, police, and EMS when Arlington's population is increasing.
Dump Fisette, we can't afford his tax-borrow-spend for hundreds of millions more in recreation-sports-entertainment.
How about their irresponsible "affordable housing" program, where it takes working 100 hours per month at $14 / hour to be able to afford an "affordable" 1-bedroom apartment?
Isn't Jay Fisette (oops Fi$ette) concerned about the slowdown in the revolving door between his domestic partner's consulting firm and the County Board offices?
If the performing arts in Arlington were about the performing arts rather than about titillating senior citizens with R-rated drivel on-stage, Arlington's performing arts groups would be holding fund-raiser events to support the Artisphere every month.
R-Rated drivel on stage? You can't be referring to the $ignature Theater, aka $tephen $ondheim $ignature Theater.
Hang on to your wallets, folks, the ride is going to get even bumpier! If all the money spent for the "artisphere" and similar vanity projects had been spent on things that ALL Arlingtonains need, like schools, infrastructure, roads...
Drive west on Wilson just west of Glebe Road or down parts of Williamsburg Blvd and you'll get all the "vibrant" you could possibly want.
I was brought up in a different era - when economic times are tight, money is spent on essentials (housing, food, clothes), and treats only with what is left over. If a treat can't be afforded at that time, defer and wait until it can. Example, the "artisphere" should have been deferred until better economic times and the money applied to fix/maintain infrastructure, roads, and revamp/open up facilities to relieve overcrowded schools...things that are truly for ALL Arlingtonians, not just the elite and rarified "board" members and their cronies.
No more $$$$ spent on the $tupid $treetcar $ystem. Like $treetcars? Go live in Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, etc.
My 2-cents - they will advertise a 6-cent increase to restore the essential services they are cutting, plus another 1/2 cent for the $chool $ystem's bloated bureaucracy.
If the performing arts crowd likes the Artisphere so much, they should buy it.
I love the performing arts...especially when the stupid sheeple taxpayers are paying for the productions.
Coming to the Signature in 2013 "The Worst of Stephen Sondheim", funding provided by a grant from Arlington County, Virginia.
Oh no, not another Signature production of "Sweeney Todd".
In further developments, Miz Babs Donnellan, the "county manager" has announce not only a tax increase, but a cut in police and fire fighter positions. Just ducky, Miss Babs. Cut essential personnel needed to respond to emergencies and keep tax paying citizens safe, but Heaven forbid, don't touch Jay's fartisphere, Zimmy's folley trolley, or the Long Bridge "acquatics center"...oh no, some elitist snot would get their feelings hurt and be upset. As for the peasants, well....in their minds, we don't need no stinkin' police protection and fire fighters, we're supposed to STHU, sit down, and pay for freakin' taxes for their gee-dee vanity/legacy projects. Oh, the "mighty" ones don't give a crap if our kids are in overcrowded schools or our roads are looking more like something in Angola or Bangladesh.
Barbara Donnellan and Arlington Police Chief Doug Scott don't have to worry about fire, EMS, and police protection, they live in Upscale Clifton, in Fairfax County.
Why should Barbara Donnellan care? She's been employed by Arlington County for 30 years and can submit her retirement application at any time.
I have to believe that Arlington County is, in reality, in bad fiscal and economic shape when so many people who are Progressive Dems, Repubs, Greens, Independents, etc., are on the same page about the County Board's tax-borrow-spend fiscal insanity bubble.
Arlington County Government's "fiscal insanity bubble". No $hit, Sherlock.
County Board is so irresponsible they cut essential EMS services rather than cut library hours. But County Board members like Fisette and Zimmerman have been elected and re-elected so many times that they're immune to criticism.
Anonymous wrote:
"County Board members like Fisette and Zimmerman have been elected and re-elected so many times that they're immune to criticism."
That's the truth! Reminds a person of the "99%" vote for the Commies from the "elections" in Stalin's USSR and post WW2 eastern bloc satellites.
Who is going to complain at the CB meeting tomorrow? Certainly not the parents who have their kids enrolled in one of Arlington's sports, recreation, performing arts centers, aka high schools.
Arlington Parents?
"Waaaaa....Waaaaa...We want our million dollar synthetic soccer field and we want it now".
Streetcars on the Pike? One Metrobus broke down on the Pike at 5 PM yesterday and traffic was backed up for a mile from Glebe Road to Four Mile Run.
Sequestration on March 1st? All out warfare breaks our on April 1st between the restaurant owners and food truck owners in the B-R corridor.
If we get to take 20 unpaid holidays no one is going to have money to spend on restaurants or food trucks.
"Waaaaaaaa.....Waaaaaa. I want my streetcar. I don't care about your unpaid leave days. If we have to raise your taxes and throw granny under the tracks, too bad. Need extra money? Become a consultant, like I did. All I ever hear is complaining about taxes. You sheeple make me sick".
Can you spell S_L_E_A_Z_E? They voted to restore the planned cuts to public safety, school, seniors, etc., and to keep their stupid streetcar funded....set the tax rate increase at 5 cents.
Where is the First Sleazocrat? Is it winter carnival time in Montreal?
First Sleazocrat was coordinating his neighbors' pro-streetcar appearance at the County Board meeting.
Where were Audrey Big Mouth Clement and the Greens?
Greens were sitting in the back of the CB Room with their fellow Limo Liberals from Voice.
I thought a 6-cent tax rate increase was a done deal.
As a matter of fact the Montreal Winter Festival (Montreal en Lumiere) IS occurring right now - February 21st to March 3rd.
Advertised (maximum) rate was set with a 5 cent increase. Tejada/Garvey wanted 6 cents, Fisette/Hynes wanted 4; they split the difference (Zimmerman missed yesterday's meeting with the flu). Final rate doesn't get voted on until mid-April.
I thought i would never see the day that a Limo Liberal and a Conservative Repub would tell the County Board at the same meeting - "Raise our taxes, please".
Flu my a$$. Who said Zimmerman has the flu? Bet a donut he's been partying in an AECOM hospitality suite in or around Montreal for the past week, when he's not been partying with Les Smart Growth Yuppies de Quebec.
Can you say 'Lying Politricksters'? Which is what the County Board and its staff (few of whom live in Arlington) have become. Arlington's residents, taxpayers, and voters are 'the enemy', don't you know? And we've been 'the enemy' for years.
Libby Garvey doesn't give a $hit about her own community - Fairlington. Our homes' assessed values have plummeted, and she wanted to raise our tax rate by 6 cents? Oh, she's all for massively redeveloping nearby residential and commercial properties so our quality of life goes to hell with a huge increase in traffic.
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