Commissioner Comander was not initially for the fix until after some of the other board members and audience members started to explain of the conditions. She talked about the house she lives in and how old the carpets were. Although I like Commissioner Comander, living in a house that you chose to not upgrade is not the same as living in a structure that houses multiple folks who work for you and has issues you are responsible for. I also believe Mr Flynt was incorrect on the amount for the MSBU for the fire tax. I believe the number is in the 350 to the 375 range. I would also like to know what the difference between the fire budget portion and the EMS portion of the budget is? Even if the County charged the full 375 MSBU which is what I think it is, the budget would be less that what they currently have unless it is supplemented with EMS moneys.
Bob,
I believe you will find that the BCC increased the MSBU for NWFD to $75 several years ago. It concomitantly approved an upper limit that it could use in the years since that was in the range of $350 or so, but I think you will find that the one time increase from 25 a year to 75 a year has not changed since that day. Property owners in North Walton pay about 8.6% of the budget via the MSBU. 90% or so of the balance of abut 9.3 mil comes from South Walton. This disparity is grossly inequitable, and the fault lies with the BCC.
The BCC broke this system in the mid-90s, pledging at the time to increase the MSBU incrementally on an annual basis until the fees collected were 100% of the cost. The increase a few years back was the first and only increase in that fee. While there are many in North Walton who would be hard-pressed to pay any significant increase in the MSBU, there are many in North Walton who could and should bear a more equitable share of the burden. Several of those latter spoke publicly against raising the MSBU several years ago, then drove away from the Courthouse in $60,000+ pickups and SUVs.
This can has been kicked down the road for nearly a quarter century. Hold your breath for the BCC doing anything constructive about it in this lifetime. Melanie Nipper has done a good service in bringing the bad conditions to the attention of the BCC. I hope she and Mr. Anderson as the new guys on board will push the Establishment Old Guard to disapprove of $6,000 desks for any Commissioners and establish better priorities for the use of our tax dollars that that and paying huge sums for indefensible lawsuits. Better leadership than we have had is sorely needed. The desk and grant monies of 50k for Cecilia's office are unconscionable and irresponsible expenditures of tax dollars. Ask the North Walton Firefighters if they agree. I hope you do, and will raise your voice against such gratuitous waste.