The Citizens of Amherst Have Been Buffaloed By Our Supervisor and His Clone, AKA: Our Comptroller
There is so much crucial work which must be done in 2008 and 2009 in Amherst. There will be at least a 12 percent rise in taxes this year and possibly another high increase next year. There are many reasons for how we got into such deep trouble. Each reason goes back to our lack of money to meet town expenses.
It began with not knowing what needed to be taken care of first in town. FIrst off we hired people who couldn’t boil water correctly. Many of these workers reamin in our employ yet it’s uncertain if they can even operate an automatic can opener. We have suffered with poor maintenance in the WWTP; delaying replacment of old equipment; the need for new trucks in the Highway Department as well as new equipment in the WWTP and Engineering Departments. Contracts with the police and workers, which should have been taken care of years ago, were settled this year with very small increases in their pay.
Several important workers have been let go. The town really needed their expertise. Many others lwere let go for variying reasons. We now will be paying consultants millions of dollars to guide our many projects and workers. This work could have been done by the expert workers who have been let go, thus saving millions.
The citizens of Amherst should expect a tax increase of 9% or higher for the year 2009.