[Elfsea] OT -- Tax rollback could affect the Bedford Boys Ranch

[Richard Threlkeld]

It looks like they need to shut down the water wells (save $500,000), close and sell the city pool (net of $1,600,000), and raise access/usage fees at the SotoGrande site. With a few other changes, it would get the budget in line. 
 
Most cities have facilities like pools, golf courses, meeting rooms, etc. for use of their citizens. Usually, the capital costs of these is paid by the taxpayers, but all the operating costs are required to be recovered by usage fees. I argue that some of these should not be owned by the city, but that is a philosophical argument (ask me about Arlington's climbing gym sometime). It looks like Bedford has run these at substantial operating losses for many years. Fees should be doubled or tripled to cover costs. They should have a staff person who aggressively markets the resources to the public and to groups that might want to use them. If all that makes them unable to compete with similar functions, then the operating costs must be reduced or they should be closed.
 
If someone wants to discuss this more (and I'm always up for this kind of discussion), I suggest we take it offline as this is truly OT.
 
Just my $0.02 and worth no more than that,
Caelin on Andrede

________________________________

From: elfsea-bounces+rjt=softwareinnovation.com at ansteorra.org on behalf of pcrandal at sbcglobal.net
Sent: Fri 1/28/2005 12:40 PM
To: Barony of Elfsea
Subject: RE: [Elfsea] OT -- Tax rollback could affect the Bedford Boys Ranch


Some information is available from the Bedford city site. Apparently discussion on this has been happening since June of last year. 
http://www.ci.bedford.tx.us/news/budgetnews.htm
Not being a accountant type nor living in Bedford, the information that I can gather is that Bedford will have to come up with about 2 million just to maintain that facility. 
 
Crandall 

"Threlkeld, Richard" <Richard.Threlkeld at xerox.com> wrote:

	Of course, we don't have the information on why there is an attempted
	tax rollback. The government officials when faced with the need to cut
	something generally choose the things most wanted by the citizens (when
	they are before the election) to prevent people from voting for it. If
	it passes, those things are generally not cut because the politicians
	have to approve the cuts and they will not get re-elected if they choose
	badly.
	
	I'm not saying the cuts are justified. I don't have any data from which
	to make a decision either way.
	
	Caelin 
	
	-----Original Message-----
	From: elfsea-bounces+richard.threlkeld=xerox.com at ansteorra.org
	[mailto:elfsea-bounces+richard.threlkeld=xerox.com at ansteorra.org] On
	Behalf Of Christine Huse
	Sent: Friday, January 28, 2005 12:00 PM
	Cc: Barony of Elfsea
	Subject: Re: [Elfsea] OT -- Tax rollba! ck could affect the Bedford Boys
	Ranch
	
	I was thinking that , too. Plus all the animals that would be left 
	homeless and also no library for the citezens to do research.
	
	I guess great minds thin alike? ;)
	Maria
	
	Rixende de Rouen wrote:
	
	>You know, I was just thinking about this this morning, and I was
	>going to ask all Bedford residents to contact me privately to discuss
	>this. It would be a shame if the Bedford Boy's Ranch facility would
	>close.
	>
	>Rixende
	>
	-- 
	"Teach us to give and not to count the cost"
	Saint Ignatius of Loyola quotes (Spanish writer and journalist,
	1491-1556)
	
	
	
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