12-10-2016, 02:07 PM
My favourite from that editorial was "To begin, that $26-a-year hit is only the bill for the average household assessed at $280,000. Residents in pricier homes would pay more."
Homes assessed above the average would pay more than the average. Genius. Maybe they think readers wouldn't have understood that. Then they should have pointed out that residents in less pricey homes would pay less.
It might have been worth saying that the resident of a suburban home with 50' of sidewalk assessed at $350,000 would pay less than a resident of a condo assessed at $400,000 who shares an eighty foot frontage between dozens of units. I don't want to get off topic, but we need a frontage levy. Other cities have them.
I think you're right, ijmorlan, that reporting everybody who does not fulfill their obligation is a step in the right direction. The City may not be able to act on all reports, but at least it will have a log of just how many property owners are not clearing their walks. Additionally, there's a cost to enforcing the bylaw as it's written now, and even in simply taking reports. As that cost grows, the case for using municipal funds to clear sidewalks becomes clearer.
Homes assessed above the average would pay more than the average. Genius. Maybe they think readers wouldn't have understood that. Then they should have pointed out that residents in less pricey homes would pay less.
It might have been worth saying that the resident of a suburban home with 50' of sidewalk assessed at $350,000 would pay less than a resident of a condo assessed at $400,000 who shares an eighty foot frontage between dozens of units. I don't want to get off topic, but we need a frontage levy. Other cities have them.
I think you're right, ijmorlan, that reporting everybody who does not fulfill their obligation is a step in the right direction. The City may not be able to act on all reports, but at least it will have a log of just how many property owners are not clearing their walks. Additionally, there's a cost to enforcing the bylaw as it's written now, and even in simply taking reports. As that cost grows, the case for using municipal funds to clear sidewalks becomes clearer.