New Haven Independent

Posted by: anon | December 18, 2008 9:18 AM

How about charging a very high toll on all vehicles entering New Haven (e.g., in the form of a massive commuter parking tax), so that the suburbs start to pay for their share of regional services?

Posted by: robn | December 18, 2008 9:32 AM

If they don't do it alreday, how about a working supervisor who spends at least 75% or his/her time with crews doing labor?

How about reducing trash collection to twice a month instead of four times a month???...the bins are big enough to hold two weeks of trash.

How about asking residents to compost leaves instead of using fossil fuels to cart them elsewhere?

Posted by: Margaret | December 18, 2008 9:58 AM

The residents of New Haven have been dealt a big enough tax blow we can't take on anymore of this burden. Condensing trash & leaf pick up would make problem worse. The street would only be loaded with trash and leafs these are services that my ridiculous taxes pay for and we should get!! Unions need to make concession; Mayor Needs to reduce pay and jobs need to be cut. It's an unfortunate situation when anyone loses their job, but that taxpayer can not take on anymore. There way too many positions held in the City from lower mgt to higher and all need to be reduced. It's a sad situation.

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 18, 2008 10:42 AM

anon
OMG I agree! But the only problem with that is the taxes are so freaken high and with the phase in and the mill rate increase (because city hall loves to spend and can not seem to stop for a while) we will be losing alot of businesses in the up coming year. So to add insult to injury to expect them to pay these fees at this point in time would chase away any non yale company's that have not exited. I think that the idea proposed to UI the other night apply's to the city in a sense. If we make it more affordable to live in New Haven during these hard times we will see company's come and people move in. Make hard cuts Johnny! decrease taxes in New Haven and they will come!

Posted by: Streever | December 18, 2008 11:07 AM

I think a 2% sales tax is a better option, because it's relatively small, & all pay in. There is a lot of precedent for municipal sales taxes, as well, and it would be much easier to pass this than other, riskier ideas.

I'm impressed. This sounds like a great dialogue between the mayor & the union, & I'm glad he met with the people who seem to know what is really going on in Public Works.

Good luck!

Posted by: Get real | December 18, 2008 11:08 AM

Cedarhill -- your view of businesses flocking to New Haven because of low taxes is kind of off the mark.

Real estate taxes aren't killing businesses right now and tax sensitive companies aren't New Haven's future. Business (and I own one) is being hurt by a combination of several things: high cost health care, a drop in consumer willingness to buy anything, and an inability to get debt (hard to get a loan).

Tax sensitive businesses in Connecticut are those that need significant floor space and use heavy equipment. This is because we use property taxes to tax both real estate and equipment. So manufacturing companies do struggle with real estate taxes. Most other businesses don't because real estate taxes just aren't a particularly big percentage of overall costs and they have not gone up nearly as much in New Haven as for residential customers. If a non-manufacturing business is crying about real estate taxes here, they are really in trouble because of other costs.

There is one New Haven exception to this. Biotech companies often have very expensive machines and these are taxable in Connecticut. The Yale expansion to West Haven does cause some concern in this area if it means new biotech startups move there but that won't be because of tax differences, it will be because Yale (which pays no taxes) bought up the Bayer property. But you don't save on tax dollars by moving to West Haven.

Realistically, biotech and other health care research facilities (think Pfizer) are in New Haven because of the closeness to Yale and the hospitals. Thus you see significant new taxable construction going on around the hospital now and in the last few years. The Cancer Center will continue this trend. So will the new taxable redevelopment at Science Park.

And if you think of the big companies downsizing or leaving New Haven in the last several years, these been heavily non-medical manufacturing. But even in these cases, health care (and pension) costs probably predominate. Think about Winchester. They basically moved all their jobs to very high tax countries where the company got health care and pensions paid for by the government.

Business taxes of all kinds have been relatively stable for a long time. Health care has been crazy. Lowering taxes will drive up crime, make education worse, and leave hundreds of homeless people walking the streets.

And that will make businesses leave -- let me assure you.

Posted by: City Hall Watch | December 18, 2008 11:09 AM

It is highly doubtful a surplus of supervisors was brought up at a staff meeting. I just don't believe it. It was proposed on the the NHI. There is no way we need a supervisor ratio for this few employees. If you need that close a supervision, then you're hiring the wrong people on the trucks.

DeStefano: You're wrong. You don't need a deputy PW person. That's just nonsense. And you don't need a spokesperson, and two $100,000 plus deputies with precious little managment experience to act as a go betweens either. Dump the new kid who is supposed to hold the hand of the rubberstampers so they know how to vote.

The jobs DeStefano is threatening to cut, are the front line people who directly serve the taxpayers of this city. Snow plows, trash removal, parks and rec maintenance. These are precisely not the people you cut. Cut the supervisors, cut LCI and move its supervisory responsibility to community services; cut Development, attorneys, engineering, planning. Move elderly services under Community Services and elminate the supervisor there. Eliminate all special assignment teachers in the BOE; patronage jobs; principal interns at $70K each; eliminate out of state travel; end personal use of city cars; delay all capital projects unless absolutely necessary or that are fully funded by 3rd parties; end longevity pay (which was proposed by NH CAN two years ago); end police and fire overtime by deploying employees there differently; hiring freeze across the board unless it is absolutely necessary to bring them on; final approval of all new hires subject to BOA approval.

We have been sacrificing for four years - a time that our tax bite has grown by more than 46%. With growing poverty in the city, unemployment near 10%, foreclosures at eye popping rate - Take a NO NEW OR INCREASED TAXES PLEDGE, Mayor. You offered a no layoff offer if city employees would sacrifice. That's the least you can offer strapped city taxpayers who have been sacrificing and on the receiving end of your runaway spending and tax collection policies for years.

MAKE THE PROMISE. It will guide your thoughts.

Posted by: Peter | December 18, 2008 11:12 AM

Lets hope Rosa gets the Labor job so John can go to Washington. He did wonderful things for the city of new haven, now the suburbs and Tweed will prosper with John as Congressman

Posted by: MSM | December 18, 2008 11:12 AM

CEDARHILL I couldnt agree with you more. The only real long term solution is to build the tax base instead of complaining about annual PILOT shortfalls. We all know Rell and others are not concerned with the health of our city. We should encourage city employees and others to live in the city they serve. We need more affordable housing stock and to increase the number of neighborhoods that are desirable ie safe to live in.

Posted by: Les Garbagio | December 18, 2008 12:49 PM

I agree with Robn. Let's make trash pickup bi-weekly. I have never once been able to fill up a blue bin with a week's worth of trash. If households are able to do that, they are wasting too much. Let's have the city set some concrete goals for waste reduction. This, in turn will reduce fiduciary waste. It's called killing two birds with one stone. I know the city's trying to save on stones right now.

Posted by: stptia | December 18, 2008 1:14 PM

like the toll tax idea above we should start a city tax that taxes anyone who works at a business in new haven and then exempt those who LIVE HERE. Let the people from the burbs pay for the services we are providing them.

Let them work someplace else if they don't like it. We have many people willing to take their spots.

Posted by: Streever | December 18, 2008 1:50 PM

City Hall Watch,

do you honestly think Bailey is just lying?

Simon Williams, according to the article, said this.

I challenge you to look his name up in the phone book, call him, & verify his statement.

You can sit here & post anonymously, make up things, hide behind a false name: but get real.. There is no value in a "watcher" who does nothing, contributes nothing, and merely creates a feeling of paranoia & mistrust.

If you think the NHI simply makes things up, why read? Why comment?

Some of your ideas have merit, but a great many other betray a basic lack of understanding of the numbers & realities in our City. "end police overtime".

Pray tell how we can accomplish this, being 80 officers down from our goal.

Again, some of your ideas are great, but unless you can back your rhetoric with an identity & work, I don't think you are contributing anything meaningful, but merely increasing the atmosphere of paranoia & mistrust which prevents ordinary citizens from becoming involved in the process.

Posted by: City Hall Watch | December 18, 2008 2:40 PM

Streever:

This is what the mayor said, and which I assume Bailey reported accurately:

"DeStefano said the issue had been brought to his attention that very same day by his chief administrative officer, Rob Smuts.

"There's a point of view, articulated in a staff meeting in City Hall today, that there are too many supervisors," DeStefano said."

I don't believe it. Later in the article, Smuts said the level of supervisors to truck workers was "about right."

Ending police overtime can be achieved. It has nothing to do with whether you are "at goal" of having the largest police force in the state. My point is you don't need that many cops; you have to deploy them differently; staff the shifts differently and deploy them where they are actually needed vs. putting them in neighborhoods for show or political purposes.

Make things up? Like what?

Posted by: David Streever | December 18, 2008 4:22 PM

I think I may have misunderstood you, when I read that you doubt the issue was brought up: you meant at the staff meeting.

When I read the mayor's words though, "There's a point of view, articulated in a staff meeting in City Hall today, that there are too many supervisors,"

That doesn't sound that unlikely too me? Especially if it was discussed at the NHI. City Hall reads the NHI, & I wouldn't be surprised if the mayor's staff didn't report to him that people were saying there were too many supervisors.

Posted by: Ben | December 18, 2008 5:26 PM

MSM,
I absolutely agree with your last statement more than any here. Making more desirable neighborhoods for people to live in in New Haven is crucial.
This is the time to do it!
Property values are low. Mortgage rates are at the lowest in 30 Years. There is a stock of bank-owned properties and there is a large group of middle income people that are now empowered to buy property where they previously were not.
Start buying on the fringes, cross the overpasses/the traintracks etc. and buy.
If you already live on the outskirts of what outsiders would consider a nice place to live and you have some extra cash, invest in your property...make it a nice neighborhood.
You will get competitive prices on contractors and you won't be watching your money wash away in the market's current plummet.
Buy now in New Haven when we have a real chance to keep the momentum going.

Posted by: unprotected | December 18, 2008 5:39 PM

last contract, the police union proposed a 5-3 work schedule. this increased police presence by 10-15% per shift. the city said no way. the trade off was an extra day off. police said no raise for 2 years to compensate for the extra day off. city said no raise, no extra day off. police said okay, the community will lose out on a 10-15% patrol increase. something that didn't make it into the papers.

Posted by: Fedupwithliberals | December 18, 2008 7:18 PM

LES GARBAGIO

Bi weekly trash pickup may sound like a great idea, but you can't even get Yalies to remember to move their cars every two weeks for street sweeping. Unintended consequence would be people forgetting to put their trash out, missing the pickup and having it sit there for an entire month. Do you want to live next to that neighbor?

Not for nothing, but I pay over 10 grand a year in taxes to this administration. Least they can do is pick up my garbage once a week.

Posted by: My 2 cents worth | December 18, 2008 9:31 PM

I have walked my dog in East Rock by a Parks Department truck where 2 men were fast asleep. An hour later I walked back and they were still asleep. That was in June or July.

In March my trash was not picked up. I complained and the next week my driveway and lawn had trash dumped on it. It took me ten minutes to find my blue bin. It had been taken to another street.

Three years ago a trash man just dropped his pants and pissed against the tree outside my house. This was in full view of school children waiting for their bus.

I regularly see public works machines parked in the road for hour on hour. Their drivers block the road and are just talking. They don't even turn the motors off. They let out black smoke polluting the neighborhood. I don't even know what they do when they move.

I once witnessed a bad accident at Orange and Willow where a car went thru a red light. I ran a block to a parked police cruiser to let the officer know. He said he would call it in, but did nothing. It took 15 minutes for the emergency services to arrive. This cop just sat in his car doing paperwork and left ordinary folks on the street to help the injured.

Can you wonder why I don't use my real name. I'm afraid of retaliation.

My point is the city needs more supervisors to get its rank and file employees to work. I'm a Democrat. Always have been and always will be. They are off track now pandering to the unions that let this go on. Its time taxpayers pushed to get local companys to do the work city hall employees do now. Get the unions out and get the work done.

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 18, 2008 9:32 PM

Fed up I agree :0
A one family with 3 kids get one blue bin they use more trash than a single person. So just because one house whole does not fill their bin does not mean another doesn't. most weeks I fill my bin close to the top and 2 recycle bins+. Every two weeks would mean trash bags on the ground.

But I do not want to get side track from the topic de jour. Budget cuts, union contracts and supervisors in ALL departments not just the Public works for god sakes! Please I am not letting the city side track the issues like they did last year with the shubert and the senior homes! The issues is that they mayor (even in this story) admits their may a mill rate increase on top of the phase in increase! WTF!!!!!!!! as Margaret stated above The residents of New Haven have been dealt a big enough tax blow we can't take on anymore of this burden.

Ben yes rates are low but property taxes are high and I am sorry but most property's in the city are OVER ASSESSED and because of this dumb ass over assessment to get the taxes high they also made it very hard for people to sell their homes for what the assessed value is right now...yes and this is leading to foreclosures! Great for gentrification purposes. But in the mean time some of these areas can side back into the hell many where crawling out of. This whole thing can back fire on the city. I am sorry but what needs to be done is affordability! Keeps people from leaving and brings more people in! And what does that add up to??? a growing grand list!

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 18, 2008 9:41 PM

ps and don't forget the city really wants you to be side tracked away from the BOE! Don't forget they have a separate budget but yes they also get a nice piece of the city budget to! Shhh don't talk about the BOE hmmmm

Posted by: Steve Ross | December 18, 2008 10:09 PM

To me it looks like DeStefano is setting up one union up to fight against another. This will bring more problems than it solves.

Posted by: Leonidas | December 18, 2008 10:50 PM

Anon and Stptia: You recommend a tax and/or toll on suburbanites who work in the city so they can "pay their fair share." I want New Haven to succeed and hope that the city can come overcome these budget problems. I am also a strong supporter of regional cooperation and regional coordination of services.

I take issue, however, with the idea that suburbanites don't "pay their fair share." A suburbanite who works in New Haven brings money and resources into the city.

Moreover, let's look at the breakdown of state aid to cities and towns in the area. The ring suburbs of Hamden, North Haven, West Haven, Woodbridge, and East Haven (total population approximately 170,000) received a little over 115 million in state aid in FY 06-07. New Haven (population approximately 123,000) received a little over 199 million.

This breaks down to:

Suburbs 676 dollars in state aid per person
New Haven 1,617 dollars in state aid per person

So I do think the suburbs pay their fair share.

Posted by: Bill | December 19, 2008 6:43 AM

New Haven should cut at the top, get rid of DeStefano. Without the Yale New Haven would be a ghost town just like Havana.

Posted by: 2nd Amendment | December 19, 2008 11:59 AM

Remember the power of the vote. In New Haven, it's kind of like periodically flushing the toilet. So, let's flush the "John" and get on with it.

Posted by: E Street | December 19, 2008 5:17 PM

I agree with many of the posts above. Appointments to positions that were once political perquisites should not longer be considered safe sinecures.

Positions in the Board of Education should be equally at risk. Why isn't John asking the same bloodletting from Dr. Mayo's team? Is every position in every school and every administrative office needed?

Featherbedding that is visible to the public (napping workers or superfluous crew members) is no less harmful than that which goes on in the city's offices and schools where people have time to look at the internet or read the paper. If a job can be done in less time by someone more efficient, that person should be retained and given more responsibility. If someone cannot provide equivalent value to us, the taxpayers, their hold on their position should be more tenuous.

Terminate the people who don't work hard and add value to the team they are part of. I think that is all the taxpayers want. That is an incentivization program to work, albeit with negative, rather than positive incentives.

Posted by: tom | December 20, 2008 7:25 AM

No disrespect MSM, but with regard to city workers living in the city? been there, done that. Problem was the pitiful job pool which necessitated going to the 'burbs'. city residents already earn additional points when appying for civil service jobs. but, you know what? none of this matters. patronage and minority quotas will determine who get hired and who gets fired!

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 22, 2008 8:32 AM

Pissed about the plowing right now! So I say lay them all off GRRRRRRR!!!! What the hell why would they slack on it? To say hey we need more guys?? Please you are spiting yourselves and your own jobs!! I say get rid of them all and hire out side contractors that will do the job right!

Posted by: Insider 2 | December 26, 2008 1:56 AM

Well folks there is an old saying be careful what you pray for because you just might get it. Well every two years we have an opportunity to bring in a new administration yet John and company remains because we really don't want change. We had Sherri Killin, James Newton, Willie Greene just to name a few and all we could do is find fault with each one of them and everyone else that threw their hats in the ring. So what do we do? We put John back in office and b***h and moan when we see no change.

King John will remain in office as long he wants. I don't blame John for the fiscal mess we face I blame the voters who year after year vote him back in. I blame the New Haven Board of Aldermen who we keep sending back who are only concerned with being on the same page with John. So folks lets dig a bit deeper in our pockets empty the savings account, dip into the kids college fund cash in the soda cans and hope and pray that we don't sink any deeper. Long Live King John.