Editor, The News:
Re: Pitt sticks to four per cent (The News, July 6).
I think that Coun. Gwen O’Connell is out of touch with reality if she thinks our local administration is doing a good job.
The top administrators are grossly overpaid to be responsible for a small city of 18,000 people, yet their salaries and benefits are comparable to larger cities like Burnaby, Surrey and Vancouver.
It is a known fact that government workers earn, on average, 30-40 per cent than the private sector, including benefits.
They tell us that the salaries must be paid to attract good people, but many of these people could not earn the same salary in the private sector, where results determine job security.
My property taxes have increased by more than 31 per cent since 2008, or an increase of 7.75 per cent a year.
Our city has gone from not having any debt a few years ago to debt of $16 million today.
However, we are comforted by Mayor Deb Walters, who assures us that it is very manageable.
When the city took over the arena from receivership. it initially thought $1 million would get it up to standard. The figure kept changing until it topped out at more than $8 million, and more work could probably be done.
The politicians spin this expense by telling us we now have an asset valued at $20 million.
Our library is beautiful and the staff are great, but our administrators have committed to a 10-year lease of more than $151,000 a year. Then there are the salaries and other overhead costs to operate the facility.
Another $1.6 million was committed to the completion of the library parking lot.
These are only a few examples, but there are many more.
Contrary to what the administrators think, many of my neighbours are constantly complaining about the exponentially increasing tax increases, and they are not all seniors.
Young people with families are so busy working and spending time with their kids that they aren’t able to get as involved in following local issues, or you might have a demonstration to protest the lack of fiscal management.
Thank you, Tom Murray, for giving your time to start a petition for all of us tapped-out taxpayers.
Mal Hanczik
Pitt Meadows