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Geauga County Budget Deficit Grows....
find ways to cut costs....dissolve GPD
Dear Editor,
In the Tuesday, July 7th Maple Leaf was an article that announced that our County Commissioners estimated a $738,000 budget deficit for 2009. Commissioner Jemison stated in the article that he could not recall a time when our county faced such deficits and listed ways the Commissioners will try to cut costs.
And then the next week was a letter by Alan Wilson where he outlined the possibility of disbanding the Geauga Park District. What a better way for Geauga County to save money! Are Geauga County residents aware of how much of their property tax dollars are given the GPD that could be spent in better ways, like our schools? How about the next time a school levy doesn’t pass and the school districts are thinking about cutting bussing or their lunch programs that they get a little loan from the GPD? After all, its all taxpayer money, isn’t it?
Now I know there are those who will say that the GPD serves a purpose by conserving our natural resources in Geauga County, and I believe that is an honorable and necessary thing. However, they are buying up more and more property on which they pay no property taxes so they are decreasing our tax base year after year! How about they just operate on a donation basis? Pay to use the park or you could leave them in your will to help cover their operating expenses? And they can start paying property taxes too!! Think about how much more money the county would have then! Why do we county taxpayers need to keep funding them when the money can be spent in more useful ways?
I’m all for disbanding them and changing the GPD into a donation-only operation.
Jean Coe
Burton
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Thanks Jean.
What does small business do to survive in tough times? They cut
overhead (trim the fat) and try to increase sales (income).
What does government do? They do not trim the fat that they are
loaded with....they retain it all....it is part of their voting base
which they don't want to lose. Instead, they find ways of taxing
YOU more!!! This is typical gov. mentality we have to get rid of!
They may sometimes cut some "TOKEN" fat to make it look good,
but it is very insignificant. If small business had this attitude,
they wouldn't survive!
Further, we don't think we need the GPD to conserve our natural
resources for us! Many communities across the country have
utilized different ways of doing this successfully without having a
park district.
We are also for dissolution of the Geauga Park District so this tax
money can be diverted to more important critical services.
We are quite sure the Park Board and Judge Charles Henry would
be horrified  at the prospect of this. Judge Henry
would lose a big pork barrel and segment of his voting base.
Operating on a donation basis would horrify them even more
because then they would have to  in order to keep the
money comming in. We think this would make them nicer people
as they would have to get rid of their arrogance and ways of
abusing people. Don't forget, when you have to ask for money,
you have to be nice or you won't get it!
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