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| Post Number: 1
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Saint Nick
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,11:56 am |
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"The sales tax would be the preferable route to go," said Mayor Jean Eaton. "We are a retail trade area." As a regional shopping center, people within 50 miles of the city shop in Albert Lea.
I have a hard time believe Mayor Eaton's claim here. 50 miles? That means people from Fairbault, Mankato, Rochester and Mason City are shopping in Albert Lea. When people from those towns do shop in Albert Lea, it is the exception not the rule. Having worked at Herbergers in Albert lea and Mankato I've seen it to be true. I've had people come from Albert lea to shop at the Mankato Herbergers because it is "nicer" and "there are more stores to go to here". That reasoning doesn't hold true in reverse.
I would say the REAL draw around Albert Lea is about 20-25 miles.
25 miles NE, people go to Rochester
25 miles N, people go to one of these 4: Rochester, Owatonna, Albert lea, Mankato
25 miles NW, people go to Mankato
25 miles S, people go to Mason city
Not saying people from father out don't shop in Albert lea, they do but believe me, 50 miles is a real stretch.
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| Post Number: 2
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kid dyn-o-mite
Unregistered
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,1:06 pm |
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You are correct and your real world experience showed what are are saying in theory to be true. Shoppers primarily look for value and now AL is even more unattractive to money spenders.
What she's really saying is, "Hey! let's get outsiders to help foot the bill so the tax burden lightens on us"
But in reality that isn't true. Iowa already has a 1% tax advantage and now she wants to make it 2%. In the end it'll bring in less money, not more like she's hoping.
It's just more proof that AL is a town that has consistently made the wrong decisions through every step of its existence.
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| Post Number: 3
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Liberal 
Group: Moderator
Posts: 11451
Joined: Aug. 2003
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,1:45 pm |
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The headline says "Residents Favor Tax" and in the article it says
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"There was a lot of support with the sales tax initiative," said Diane Herman, a researcher with Cincinnatus who helped oversee the telephone survey.
About 48 percent of 376 respondents said they liked the idea of a half-percent sales-tax increase "extremely," "very" or "quite" well. Nearly 20 percent said they do not like the idea at all.
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If less than half the people (48%) supports the idea then anyone with even a little common sense can tell you that the majority of residents don't favor the tax!
This should have been the end of this whole idea, but now Eaton wants to try to educate us because we are apparently just to ignorant to know what's good for us.
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Both Eaton and Herman emphasized the importance of education. The city needs to "launch a campaign to educate people and answer questions," Herman said.
"Education is the key," said Eaton.
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The people are masters of both Congress and courts, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it!
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| Post Number: 4
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Lea dog
Unregistered
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,2:10 pm |
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| Quote (Guest @ Dec. 24 2003,11:56:am) | | I've had people come from Albert lea to shop at the Mankato Herbergers because it is "nicer" and "there are more stores to go to here". That reasoning doesn't hold true in reverse. |
what you mean? we gots a Super-duper Wallymart (oh yeah so does everyone else), wait we gots a Home Depot (oh yeah so does everyone else), wait we gots a Applebees (oh yeah so does everyone else), wait we gots a Green Mill (oh yeah so does everyone else). Maybe the peoples from Mankato and ROchester don't shop here but how abouts all the folks stopping in from DesMoines and Minneapolis? They will pay to clean up our lakes a million times over, dis tax is like free money, what else can we spend it on?
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| Post Number: 5
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irisheyes
Group: Super Administrators
Posts: 3040
Joined: Oct. 2003
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,3:42 pm |
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It seems like people in government (specifically big-government, tax & spend advocates) think that the economy and taxes are a zero sum game. But it isn't, when they make changes to tax's it effects everything! Even if it's only 1%, people are gonna get sick of it and take their business elsewhere, even if it's not about money, but only out of spite (and who would blame them). We could actually end up losing tax revenue because of this!
They keep raising every kind of tax they can, and then when people leave they stand their wondering why. Then decide they have to tax even more to make up for the ones that moved. After that tax more so they can spend more on things they think will bring people back to town (yeah, cross your fingers)...
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You know it's going to be a bad day when you cross thread the cap on the toothpaste.
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| Post Number: 6
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exxtreme one
Unregistered
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Posted on: Dec. 24 2003,7:37 pm |
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What would be brilliant would be to jump outside the box and do just the opposite...reduce the sales tax to make this area a shoppers haven, a place where one can go to save a few bucks.
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| Post Number: 7
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hoosier
Group: Members
Posts: 1476
Joined: Aug. 2003
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Posted on: Dec. 25 2003,7:02 am |
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As far as the survey goes, is there really anyone out there that thought they wouldnt come to this conclusion? I agree with Liberal here, how does 48 percent come out to being support for the tax? All these posters are right in my opinion, when are the idiots in charge of this mess going to realize what everyone else already has? You cant raise taxes and attract people and business. I mean come on, Eaton and the council always say that its not them that cant attract new people and business, its the states higher taxes. So what logic do our leaders use to help, lets raise taxes even more.
Where in the hell do we get the people that are in local government? I have lived many different places but this has to be the most backward thinking place in the U.S. With our county board and city council, we would be better off if they just did nothing, every decision they make moves us back a step.
Lets not forget that in the survey they said that only 48 percent favored the tax, but 20 percent said they dont like the idea at all. In my mind that makes it 72 percent that would probably vote against it. But you can bet your @ss that wont stop them from spending money for a referendom that will fail. Then we will all be told that we dont understand how to make the town grow. Bull$hit! When are our elected officials going to get a clue? 
Edited by hoosier on Dec. 25 2003,7:04 am
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The power of accurate obsvervation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it.
George Bernard Shaw
The devil begins with froth on the lips of an angel entering into battle for a holy and just cause. Grigory Pomerants
We have crossed the boundary that lies between Republic and Empire. Garet Garrett
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| Post Number: 8
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irisheyes
Group: Super Administrators
Posts: 3040
Joined: Oct. 2003
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Posted on: Dec. 25 2003,10:04 am |
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I don't know how many they called for the poll, but from the Tribune article it sounds like they only gave them two choices. "Which would you rather have, an increased sales tax, or an increased property tax (again)"? So they don't give the option to choose neither, and then the headline is "residents favor tax"!
It's like the commercial where they say 9 out of 10 dentists prefer colgate, but neglect to mention that the other choice they gave them was not brushing at all.
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You know it's going to be a bad day when you cross thread the cap on the toothpaste.
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| Post Number: 9
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kid dyn-o-mite
Unregistered
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Posted on: Dec. 25 2003,10:53 am |
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This is a consulting firm HIRED in hopes of achieving a specific result. Is it any wonder the results favor the paying party?
They wouldn't be hiring consultant people and be paying them tens of thousands of dollars if they didn't in the end want to raise your taxes.
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| Post Number: 10
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jimhanson
Group: Moderator
Posts: 8491
Joined: Aug. 2003
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Posted on: Dec. 25 2003,12:33 pm |
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From exxtreme one| Quote | | What would be brilliant would be to jump outside the box and do just the opposite...reduce the sales tax to make this area a shoppers haven, a place where one can go to save a few bucks. |
I think you're on to something here. We can't NOT CHARGE sales taxes--but could we do something with the JOBZ zones--retail outlets, with tax savings passed on to the customer?
It would "level the playing field" vs. Iowa taxes, and give us a leg up on other cities. The only problem, any city with a JOBZ zone could do the same thing.
What we need here is not an Indian Reservation, but the equivalent of one--legal gambling, tax-free cigarettes and other goods. Better yet--just have the fools in St. Paul recognize that every time they raise taxes, revenues go down.
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"If you want to anger a Conservative, tell him a lie. If you want to anger a LIBERAL, tell him the TRUTH!"
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