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Property Tax Assessment

quente

By quente
in Providence

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Mothra Whistle-Stop

Mothra

Posted
Posted

Residents SHOULD gripe about the pathetic services. Residents should question why it is impossible for the city to pick up trash and empty trash barrels on city streets when we have DPW AND contract trash and recycling services out--why there is a fully staffed parks department and parks that are a wreck, why we pay for a sidewalk and highway crew when the sidewalks and roads are in terrible shape and only get fixed during election years or when the residents float another capital improvement bond scheme which gets bid out to a contractor anyway.

Folks should be showing up at every opportunity they have--meetings, hearings, letters to their elected officials, letters to the editor to the Providence Journal etc asking why it is that residents have to not just pay taxes, but also do the lions share of the quality of life work in the city's neighborhoods! If the city ever got a bill from all the residents for all the work they do...

The truth is that many things have NOT changed in the city with the change of guard regardless of the cheerleading and the new buildings downtown. and yet taxes have gone up...

Folks who left the city aren't wrong in saying that its entirely too dirty, and shabby and unkempt and hot and hard to live in. At some point, all the new shiney skyscrapers and steak houses in the world aren't worth it when you just want a nice, signed and tree-lined street, safe parks for people to play in, and trash picked up, public meetings noticed, etc and honestly those things are pretty cheap to provide and yet, where are they?

I'm sure there will be lots of shouting me down, and I've heard all the arguments for why people move to Providence and stay in Providence and why Providence is sooo totally cool that it doesn't deserve the likes of me, but clearly the lack of services is an issue and some folks resent (rightfully so) the equivalent of another part or even full time job they take on trying to make Providence's neighborhoods livable.

So, who went to the city council's public hearing on the budget to complain about services? :whistling:

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KRC Hamlet

KRC

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Posted
Folks who left the city aren't wrong in saying that its entirely too dirty, and shabby and unkempt and hot and hard to live in. At some point, all the new shiney skyscrapers and steak houses in the world aren't worth it when you just want a nice, signed and tree-lined street, safe parks for people to play in, and trash picked up, public meetings noticed, etc and honestly those things are pretty cheap to provide and yet, where are they?
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Pseudo_Work Hamlet

Pseudo_Work

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Folks who left the city aren't wrong in saying that its entirely too dirty, and shabby and unkempt and hot and hard to live in. At some point, all the new shiney skyscrapers and steak houses in the world aren't worth it when you just want a nice, signed and tree-lined street, safe parks for people to play in, and trash picked up, public meetings noticed, etc and honestly those things are pretty cheap to provide and yet, where are they?
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Mothra Whistle-Stop

Mothra

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Sorry, i think you both .misunderstood me. When i said "where are they?" I mean, where are the services that are really quite easy and cheap to provide--especially when we have entire city departments dedicated to such things. Not where are the people who want a decent place to live in the city. I know those people are already here, lordy how i know because you people remind me how special and pioneering you are every day :rolleyes: .

But the truth is some of the cheerleaders of the city's renaissance even recognize that the quality of life issues can use some work--that the city cannot continue to let the residents take on the burdon of keeping their neighborhood clean, mowed, treed, mulched, flowered, etc.

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xine Whistle-Stop

xine

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I knew the city was growing, but I didn't realize the top was growing and the bottom was shrinking, in fact I was under the impression that our growth was still dependent on poor immigrants and wealthier whites were still fleeing. What is the middle doing?
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mbz Unincorporated Area

mbz

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Depends on how you define the middle- 50-75K earners increased by solid margins (42%) , but every category with household income below 50K dropped by single digits.

And yes, the white-non-hispanic population dropped between 1990 and 2000.

I don't know that there's any correlation between race, education, and wealth that I can tell from the numbers I've seen.

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Jenkins Whistle-Stop

Jenkins

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You need some help with reading comprehension.

I used to own a home here. I didn't say I moved out of the city; i said I don't pay property taxes (except by how my rent is tied to what my landlord has to pay) here any more.

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Lone Ranger Burg

Lone Ranger

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Posted
At some point, all the new shiney skyscrapers and steak houses in the world aren't worth it when you just want a nice, signed and tree-lined street, safe parks for people to play in, and trash picked up, public meetings noticed, etc and honestly those things are pretty cheap to provide and yet, where are they?
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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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It is only if they are busy. See Ruth's Chris lately? They are hurting. These places cant live on Waterfire nights alone. They need to be busy on a Tuesday too...

I just hope they and any other new shop and restaurant hangs on till people start living downtown in greater concentration.

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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Amen. If the majority of people keep voting in the same unresponsive if not crooked representatives nothing will change. I was very disappointed that in the last statewide election what little opposition party we have in this state actually lost ground to the entrenched majority!

In essence the representatives who will not pave your street or clean your park were told by the voters "good job". I realize a lot of that had to do with voting against the party of Bush, but biting your nose to spite your face will get you nowhere. Meanwhile, the latest budget from the legislature plans on diverting the tabacco settlement money away from desperately needed roadwork and towards the black hole that is the deficit. Call your rep and complain if you think this is a bad idea.

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Cotuit Megalopolis

Cotuit

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Convention Center is still open, though they were filming a movie there today in the rotunda. This week the Gay Officers Action League is holding their national conference at the Biltmore. Even when there's nothing at the Convention Center itself, the Westin and the Biltmore host a lot of events throughout the year. Pride this weekend should give places like Ruth's Chris a boost, Pride brings in a lot of people from across Southeastern New England, every year more and more people see the improvements in the city during events like Pride and WaterFire. The Pride Committee is also working to advertise and encourage people to spend a long weekend in Providence and see some shows at PPAC and such and make a weekend of more than just Pride on Saturday.

Didn't I hear that the entire Smokey Bones chain went under?

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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Convention Center is still open, though they were filming a movie there today in the rotunda. This week the Gay Officers Action League is holding their national conference at the Biltmore. Even when there's nothing at the Convention Center itself, the Westin and the Biltmore host a lot of events throughout the year. Pride this weekend should give places like Ruth's Chris a boost, Pride brings in a lot of people from across Southeastern New England, every year more and more people see the improvements in the city during events like Pride and WaterFire. The Pride Committee is also working to advertise and encourage people to spend a long weekend in Providence and see some shows at PPAC and such and make a weekend of more than just Pride on Saturday.

Didn't I hear that the entire Smokey Bones chain went under?

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f1rehead Whistle-Stop

f1rehead

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i've complained to the city about bad patch jobs from the utilities. a few times they were fixed, a few other times i heard that "there is little the city can do to make sure the utilities properly patch the holes they make".

at least in my former ward, my councilman ran unopposed. while i don't have a big issue with mancini, it would've been nice to see some other people getting involved. the only thing he did that bothered me was claim that the asphalt sidewalk they put in next to my house was "temporary" and would be replaced in the spring. meanwhile, they were putting in concrete sidewalks down the street... and spring has come and gone and it's still asphalt. i did write to him and complained about that.

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xine Whistle-Stop

xine

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It's nice that there's someone around to back up what they are saying with data! This information is really interesting - where did you get it?

I'm seriously not being skeptical; I'd just like to know more.

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runawayjim Metropolis

runawayjim

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That isn't true at all. If a utility tears up a sidewalk they are required to replace it.

Tell the Office of Neighborhood Services and they'll get the city engineer on it. We just had a similar situation at the corner of Westminster and Messer and the ONS assures me that it will be replaced with concrete with a month.

(Spring isn't technically over yet, btw, they still have a few days)

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