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Health & Fitness

Marietta's $68 Million Policeman

Mayor Tumlin wants to increase the property taxes of Marietta residents $68 million and use it to fight phantom battles on Franklin Road. He wants the citizens of Marietta to vote to re-elect him and vote YES to pass a $68 million bond issue on Election Day Nov. 5.

 

1st, Mayor Tumlin says in his MDJ ads that he want to “reduce crime “on Franklin Road. Actually, the crime rate is falling on Franklin Road and is currently about the same as the rest of the city.

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Back to our mayor, how does he propose to “reduce crime”? He wants to take $68 million dollars and buy a lot of apartments on Franklin Road and bulldoze them. If the mayor isn’t too bright (his nickname is Thunder), surely he has someone on his staff who might suggest hiring a couple more Marietta policemen for Franklin Road.  Do you think a few more police might be a more efficient way to spend tax payer dollars to reduce crime and certainly cost less than $68 million dollars?

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2nd, in the Mayors MDJ ad, he says vote for the $68 million bond issue to make “safer schools”. For less than $68 million Marietta could set up pre-school programs on Franklin Road. For less than $68 million Marietta could set up after school recreation and tutoring centers. For less than $68 million more security could be put into schools.  Mayor Tumlin hasn’t explained how Marietta schools will be safer but for $68 million they will be less brown and less black.

 

3rd, the mayors MDJ ad says there will be “Increased property values”. The mayors tax increase of 2 mils or $3,200 per $200,000 house over 20 years will leave a bruise on Marietta tax payers. Perhaps the fact-free promise of “Increased property values” will lessen the pain of self-inflicted tax increases by Marietta tax payers.

 

Isn’t Franklin road slummy? Most people have that image when they think of Franklin Road. That’s what I used to think. The former apartment management had let their properties decline. I hadn’t been there in years.  With new management taking over in the last 3 years, Franklin Road is seeing a Renaissance. Exteriors and interiors of apartments are being remodeled. New parking lots are being installed and playgrounds too. The city of Marietta has done a good job of improving roads and sidewalks on Franklin Road, just like Roswell Street. Mayor Tumlin is counting on Marietta residents remembering the old Franklin Road when they vote on Nov. 5.

 

You may have heard something about redevelopment; Mayor Tumlin has disclosed precious little of his plans. Who will buy the property? Will they be the mayor’s buddies? How much will they pay? With all the recent increases in property value on Franklin Road, with the upgrades on the apartments, streets, and sidewalks, how much will $68 million buy? What does Marietta expect to get for $68 million? For $68 million there should be of a list of projects and a theme for what is expected. All we know for sure is that there will be fewer brown and black residents of Marietta and that Whitlock Avenue will get a well-deserved $4 million sidewalk that will cost Marietta taxpayers $68 million.

 

Perhaps Thunder realized that he made a very expensive error but like most politicians, saying he made a mistake is not in his character. He could be thinking that the voters of Marietta will save him from this very expensive boondoggle by not voting to raise their own taxes to pay for it. With an expected low turnout on Election Day Nov. 5 and a poorly informed electorate, Mayor Thunder may not have enough Marietta voters to save him.

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