To the editor:
What if City Council decided to use the additional 4 percent marijuana tax to replace the current funding mechanism for the water/sewer enterprise and the stormwater enterprise? Water and sewer base fees and the stormwater drainage fee could be removed from residents’ bills every month (upwards of $50 per month on my bill).
The money truly stays in Manitou and it benefits a true majority of residents. You know, the ones who made this revenue possible to begin with. Versus more Urban Renewal Authority/ development projects that essentially send all the money to out-of-town consultants and contractors, and benefit only a minority of residents.
In a round-about way, this truly democratizes the way tax dollars are spent. Each water bill-paying resident can then decide where they want to spend that saved money.
C’mon, let’s reward the residents who made this happen, not the current model where the bureaucrats, out-of-town consultants and contractors, and Denver- and Pueblo-owned shops make tens of millions of dollars off our actions, while we sit around waiting for the next rate increase on our water bills.