Scarborough Voters
- A New Downtown with Your Future Tax Dollars (~$150M?)
- without a public referendum!
- Private Executive Session discussions 9/5 & 9/19 on the TIF/CEA
- Doubters - check Scarborough's Town Website and the Downtown TIF Presentation
Here is the August 19, 2018 SMARTaxes Press Release -
SMARTaxes Expresses Deep Concern about Scarborough Downs Tax Break
SMARTaxes, the Scarborough taxpayer advocacy group, today expressed deep concern with the proposed tax increment financing agreement (TIF) for the Scarborough Downs development project. The proposed TIF is rumored to provide more than $150 million of future real estate tax receipts to the Crossroads Development partnership. This is especially troubling since the Town has identified the need for a new $55 million primary school within the next 2-4 years.
SMARTaxes member Larry Hartwell identified four major elements of the group’s concern:
SMARTaxes will follow developments in the TIF process closely and work diligently to keep taxpayers informed about the most important decision that the Town will likely make in the next quarter century.
SMARTaxes, the Scarborough taxpayer advocacy group, today expressed deep concern with the proposed tax increment financing agreement (TIF) for the Scarborough Downs development project. The proposed TIF is rumored to provide more than $150 million of future real estate tax receipts to the Crossroads Development partnership. This is especially troubling since the Town has identified the need for a new $55 million primary school within the next 2-4 years.
SMARTaxes member Larry Hartwell identified four major elements of the group’s concern:
- Project and TIF impacts not known: The details of what the Scarborough Downs project will look like are very unclear. And the project’s impact on the Town has not been analyzed or explained. For instance, no information has been shared with the public about the anticipated number of housing units or the number and types of potential businesses that will be constructed. Without this information it is impossible to assess key project impacts such as additional school students enrolled or increased traffic flows generated. We should not be agreeing to a huge tax break for a project without understanding whether or not it is a good project for the Town.
- Unacceptable approval timetable: The Town has described the project as “the largest single development in our history.” Yet the TIF tax break is scheduled to be rushed through the approval process in four weeks after the details of the proposal are released on September 5. The proposed TIF agreement will impact our taxes for thirty years. Four weeks is simply not enough time for the Town’s residents to understand and discuss the project, its impact on the Town and its impact on future budgets and tax rates. In fact, in the past we spent months and months discussing the dogs on the beach issue and the municipal sign ordinance – decisions of significantly less overall impact on the Town. A greatly expanded schedule involving significant public outreach is needed to fulfill the Council’s fiduciary responsibility in making a decision of this magnitude.
- Lack of meaningful resident input: The details of the project are unknown at this point. Assuming more information about the project and TIF is made available at the September 5 Town Council workshop and thereafter, residents will still have a very limited voice in the final decision on the TIF – through public comments at Council meetings or emails to members of the Council. For this once-in-a-generation decision, we believe a referendum should be held on the TIF. While the Charter does not provide for such a referendum, there is no reason that an advisory vote could not be taken in November. The Charter did, after all, require a referendum to approve borrowing $585,000 for a fire truck in 2014. Shouldn’t voters have some direct say in giving a $150 million tax break to a developer?
- Lack of independent expertise: At the Town Council workshop on August 15, it became clear that the Town has been relying on market data and financial projections provided by the developer’s consultants. For an agreement of this complexity and long-term impact, we strongly urge the Council to engage an independent expert in this highly specialized field to protect the interests of taxpayers.
SMARTaxes will follow developments in the TIF process closely and work diligently to keep taxpayers informed about the most important decision that the Town will likely make in the next quarter century.
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Or just email us at - ScarboroughTaxes@Yahoo.com
Write us at SMARTaxes, PO Box 893, Scarborough, ME 04070
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Write us at SMARTaxes, PO Box 893, Scarborough, ME 04070
Follow us on Facebook: Concerned Taxpayers of Scarborough
