Thursday, July 12, 2007

Tax UPMC and then what

Over at another blog I posted a reply to the notion that a tax on UPMC is what is needed.



Folks, think again.

If Pittsburgh's Politicians should move to tax UPMC, Pgh would be a REAL Ghost Town. Then we'd really be able to watch another chapter of the cancer spread.

It is the same type of observation of when talking about the downtown if you are the Pgh Downtown Partnership. The bums, hobos, street people are messing up the downtown streets. -- WRONG -- Fact is, the streets are so empty that the only ones you see are the more seedy folks. The problem is that they are the only ones you notice when nobody else is around.

UPMC isn't the problem. The problem is that everyone else has already departed.

Taxing UPMC won't bring everyone else back.

Envy can't drive the region and city into the future. That's not a formula for success. That's not how I want to raise my children. And, when they get mature enough to see it for themselves, they'll not want to stick around and be a part of it either.

Likewise, clearing the bums off of the downtown streets won't allow downtown to thrive again.

Think again if you think that the root of the problem is to 'tax UPMC.'

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Seriously, Mark, your right, they should not be taxed, but, the D's have drained everyone, don't you see some form of a significant tax coming soon for the non profits?

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07057/765114-53.stm

A good article for reference...

Your insights Mark?

Mark Rauterkus said...

The article with the URL above had this line:

Figuring out how to pay for basic services while tax-exempt organizations control large blocks of land is a problem for cities nationwide.

I want to attack the roots -- the control of large blocks of land. THAT is the key. Today, we need to make a STAND and tell the nonprofits to STOP growing its LAND FOOTPRINT. And, after the inventory, we need to have the nonprofits to SHRINK its LAND FOOTPRINT.

Nonprofits need to work together to make better land-use decisions -- on their own.

Nonprofits need to EXPAND in upwards ways -- taller buildings, higher density, -- not outward in sprawl.