Our Town

[Guest Guest]

There are many old industrial towns in the northeast similar to Harrison. Business have left and much of their property is vacant. Many of these towns have taken an innovative approach to development. They have raised the taxes on the vacant land based on the land values. This accomplishes the following.

1. It provides the town with needed revenue from the vacant land.

2. It forces the owner of the property to redevelop it or lose money to taxes.

B. It forces the owner to sell the land to someone who will develop it.

3. It will lapse to town ownership if the taxes are not paid.

Harrison has taken another approach. It has allowed a tax deduction because the industrial property is vacant.

1. This deprives the town of needed revenue while a vacant eyesore is allowed to sit idle.

2. This allows the owner to sit on the property while it's value appreciates. Thus the owner is making money while the town is loosing it, and the residents are forced to live with an eyesore.

Harrison has cried poverty to the state and has become a distressed city, based primarily on the loss of industry in recent years, lowering it's tax base.

It is also an Abbot district claiming insufficient tax revenues to support it's educational system. The lack of revenue has resulted in larger class sizes and a lack of facilities forcing students to use trailers instead of classrooms.

However it has been able to sell bonds which will buy the property from an owner who let the property sit while it appreciated for many years while the town lost revenue.

When the redevelopment is over we will once again have crowed classrooms and our kids will be back in trailers because we spent all of our money building a stadium for a New York business.

We have a mayor and council with a "redevelop at all costs mentality." We gave JFK Stadium to the developers at a value far below it's cost just to get the redevelopment off the ground.

Soon the mayor and council will point to the new hotel, which was built with private funds and was outside the development zone with huge tax abatements. They will point to the new JFK development, which was built on land practicality given to the contractor for free, also with huge ax abatements. They will point to the new RED BULLS NEW YORK STADIUM, which will be built on land paid for by the taxpayers of Harrison, also with huge tax abatements, and try to sell this as accomplishments of this administration.

Can anyone tell me how any of these things have benefited the average Harrison resident? This will raise rents and property taxes. We are being taken over the coals by an administration consisting of plumbers, people who didn't even have jobs, and egomaniacs.

Oh, did I forget the new school also built with state funds, that should make the administration look good. Remember the millions spent on the parking lot across from the high school, and the big land swindle buying RFK stadium. This all costs the taxpayers millions more in addition to the cost of the school

[Guest Guest]

There are many old industrial towns in the northeast similar to Harrison. Business have left and much of their property is vacant.  Many of these towns have taken an innovative approach to development.  They have raised the taxes on the vacant land based on the land values.  This accomplishes the following.

1.  It provides the town with needed revenue from the vacant land.

2.  It forces the owner of the property to redevelop it or lose money to taxes.

      B.  It forces the owner to sell the land to someone who will develop it.

3.  It will lapse to town ownership if the taxes are not paid.

Harrison has taken another approach.  It has allowed a tax deduction because the industrial property is vacant.

1.  This deprives the town of needed revenue while a vacant eyesore is allowed to sit      idle.

2.  This allows the owner to sit on the property while it's value appreciates.  Thus the owner is making money while the town is loosing it, and the residents are forced to live with an eyesore.

Harrison has cried poverty to the state and has become a distressed city, based primarily on the loss of industry in recent years, lowering it's tax base.

It is also an Abbot district claiming insufficient tax revenues to support it's educational system.  The lack of revenue has resulted in larger class sizes and a lack of facilities forcing students to use trailers instead of classrooms.

However it has been able to sell bonds which will buy the property from an owner who let the property sit while it appreciated for many years while the town lost revenue. 

When the redevelopment is over we will once again have crowed classrooms and our kids will be back in trailers because we spent all of our money building a stadium for a New York business.

We have a mayor and council with a "redevelop at all costs mentality."  We gave JFK Stadium to the developers at a value far below it's cost just to get the redevelopment off the ground.

Soon the mayor and council will point to the new hotel, which was built with private funds and was outside the development zone with huge tax abatements.  They will point to the new JFK development, which was built on land practicality given to the contractor for free, also with huge ax abatements.  They will point to the new RED BULLS NEW YORK STADIUM, which will be built on land paid for by the taxpayers of Harrison, also with huge tax abatements, and try to sell this as accomplishments of this administration.

Can anyone tell me how any of these things have benefited the average Harrison resident?  This will raise rents and property taxes.  We are being taken over the coals by an administration consisting of plumbers, people who didn't even have jobs, and egomaniacs.

Oh, did I forget the new school also built with state funds, that should make the administration look good.  Remember the millions spent on the parking lot across from the high school, and the big land swindle buying RFK stadium.  This all costs the taxpayers millions more in addition to the cost of the school

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THANK YOU FOR THIS VERY INTERESTING INFORMATION, I DON'T THINK MANY TOWN RESIDENTS ARE AWARE OF THIS, I PERSONALY DID NOT. THANK YOU