Quote:
Originally Posted by DanishAndScottish
1. Core function of government is to provide the essential services for all that reside in its jurisdiction to ensure their health and safety.
2. Government has to raise those funds in some manner.
3. Competing interests with businesses, developers, and residents who also have a bottom line.
4. Rapid expansion of residential and commercial inventory puts a strain on current government resources. This directly affects #1.
5. Developer backed County commissioners were decisively beat in their primary 2 to 1. The challenger candidates then went on to win their general election.
6. Developer backed local political party is now trashing the County Commissioners of their own party because they are not developer backed.
7. Because these County Commissioners answer to the people they represent and not to the developer, the developer is using a paid member of the FL House to pass a bill to limit the authority of local government.
8. Everyone that speaks tonight in favor of an impact fee hike, needs to state the above points over and over and over again.
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That is an excellent summary of the situation.
I would just add one point that many residents have still not focused on. The Developer should not only be paying 100% for county road infrastructure that his massive expansion of The Villages is necessitating. He should also be paying for his other county infrastructure: Libraries, fire, police, jails, other government buildings, EMT, parks, sewers, etc. To impose those impact fees, the County Commission needs to contract for a new impact fee study.
Also, remember that Sumter County is unique. No other county is facing the rapid and massive increase in infrastructure costs that are being piled on Sumter County by the Developer's massive expansion of The Villages. The Developer should be paying those costs, not us current residents.