Monday, November 4, 2013

If You Want A Tax Increase - Vote Clean Sweepers


Did the headline and photo grab your attention?   It should.
Full disclosure, the clean sweepers, to my knowledge, are NOT pushing for a tax increase.   However, their uninformed policies could very well force the city to increase taxes to pay for the massive legal defense bills that could pile up.
If you've read John Heneghan's blog or that of Dunwoody Farmer Bob, you are familiar with the letter circulated by Tammy Anderson, the wife of dismissed city attorney Brian Anderson.
In a nutshell it insinuates Dunwoody has the means to stop 3,000 apartments from being constructed as part of the High Street project across from the Dunwoody Marta.  It implies the current council is not doing anything to prevent the construction, but if elected, that the "clean sweepers" would.
I don't know a whole lot about zoning, but I have spoken directly with those that do.  They say without a doubt, following the advise of Tammy Anderson's letter will put the city on the wrong end of a lawsuit that it cannot win.
It's pretty simple.  The developers purchased the High Street property because it was zoned high density.   The city can work with the developers, and through the use of variances, modify the project and hopefully lower that density.  But they cannot flat out change it, as the letter, and the sweepers, would have you believe.
Imagine you and your spouse purchased a home in Dunwoody with the idea of raising a family.   A few years after the purchase, the city changes the zoning to limit the number of people per household to two.  You'd cry foul, sue the city and win big.
My concern with the sweepers is their lack of knowledge and the unintended consequences.  If they had attended council meetings or DHA meeting or zoning meetings prior to running for office, they would have a working knowledge of government, which is vastly different from private business.  But they didn't attend any of these meetings.  They did not take the time to educate themselves.  Basically, they want to go from kindergarten straight to high school.   Like a child making such a jump, their chances of succeeding are very small.   And unfortunately, it will come at the taxpayers' expense.
Vote Shortal, Wescott & Thompson on Tuesday.