Chief
08-01-2007, 05:24 AM
http://www.westerndredging.org/cgi-bin/mail.cgi/archive/Local/20070731211457/
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Was The Port Lying to US on Feb 21st or are they lying to us now?
Date: July 31st, 2007
Below is a draft of the statement I made at the League of Women Voters Tonight. Below that is an article Published in the columbian on February 21, 2007 in which Port Director, Larry Paulson stated that the port had already purchased the Alcoa/Evergreen Property and had made financial arrangements to complete in 2009 the Rail Road Expansion. Please read both carefully.
L. M. Patella
CDR USN (ret)
Comments made at League of Women Voters debate.
Why should you vote no on the on the Port of Vancouver’s Industrial Development District Levy. The answers are quite simple. First of all The Port of Vancouver attempted, without your vote, to impose a property tax rate that represents a 132% increase over the current tax rate the Port now collects. Only a successful petition drive by the people has allowed your voice to be heard. Second the Port, in my opinion, is misleading the voter.
In what appears to be a good old fashion “deal con-cocked in the proverbial smoked filled backroom”, Port Commissioners met on a Friday and signed a deal on the following Monday without seeking any input from the taxpayers and imposed a 132% property tax increase that would net them some 78 million dollars to buy a 48 million dollars property that has been on the market for years with no other apparent buyers.
Why? The Port’s answer is they want to create jobs. Yet, there appears to be some confusion on just how many jobs will be created. Larry Paulson claims 15,000 jobs, Val Ogden 6000 new Family wage jobs, The columbian is reporting 2000, and others are looking at 1853.
The port also has also neglected to inform the voters that the rail project they are proposing and the purchase of the Alcoa/Evergreen property may already, as reported in the columbian on February 21, 2007 be a done deal.
And if it is not a done deal what happened between Larry Paulson’s announcements made during his annual Port Report to a packed audience at an Inn at the Quay Breakfast and the hastily put together IDD Property Tax Levy weeks later. That report was published in the columbian on February 21, 2007.
Here are a couple of quotes from Mr. Paulson’ Report: A Copy of the Article is available is provided below.
“The Port of Vancouver could potentially generate another 15,000 additional jobs resulting from the development of columbian Gateway, the newly bought Alcoa/Evergreen site on the Columbia River and the new light industrial properties in Fruit Valley”,
“The Alcoa/Evergreen property was bought this month (February 2007) by the port and is being finance by a property tax-based industrial bond issue”
“The Port recently initiated a $60-to $70-million rail improvement project, being financed both privately and by the port, that will provide direct access to all port tenants. The Project, to be completed in 2009, will result in a dramatic decrease in rail congestion on the west coast and on lines leading from Vancouver to Chicago in the east and Houston in the South”.
These ladies and gentlemen are Pre IDD Levy Decisions and Pre Petition Drive statements. If I were, an attorney my next question would be, was the port lying to us in February 2007 or are they lying to us now. What happened Between February 21, 2007 and that closed door meeting on a Friday night weeks later that caused the Port to rush into a Monday agreement to Raise our Property Taxes. What ever it was, we are not being told.
In any event, it makes all the port’s and Citizens for strong Economy claims, statements, TV Ads, posters, Flyers, and yard Signs suspect.
Paulson also was quoted in the columbian as declaring the Port profitable in 2006. Revenue’s he said have more than doubled since 2001. Why then do they now need to raise our taxes.
And last but not least a no vote on the Ports outrageous attempt to impose new taxes without a vote of the people will send to all elected officials that they should not impose tax increases without first securing public input and comment.
Your Vote No is a must. At the rate your property taxes and other taxes are increasing you will, in the not too distant future, no longer own your home; you will be renting it from the Government.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Port of Vancouver bustling, projects
will double employment to 32,000 jobs
Published in the columbian February 21, 2007
Port of Vancouver executive director Larry Paulson today opened his Port Report to a packed breakfast audience in the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, declaring that “the port’s role is to provide family wage jobs, jobs that pay enough to buy a house.”
“We believe we can create enough of these jobs to help form a defining moment for our community,: Paulson continued, “Imagine a time when thousands more Clark County residents can work close to home. We believe that time is now.”
According to Paulson, the port today contributes over 15,500 jobs, with 6,000 of those jobs directly on port property.
“The Port of Vancouver could potentially generate another 15,000 additional jobs resulting from development of Columbia Gateway, the newly bought Alcoa/Evergreen site on the Columbia River and the new light industrial properties in Fruit Valley,” Paulson said.
"The Alcoa/Evergreen property was bought this month by the port and is being financed by a property tax-based industrial bond issue".
"The port recently initiated a $60- to $70-million rail improvement project, being financed both privately and by the port, that will provide direct access to all port tenants. The project, to be completed in 2009, will result in a dramatic decrease in rail congestion on the west coast and on lines leading from Vancouver to Chicago in the east and Houston in the south", Paulson reported.
Paulson declared the port profitable in 2006. Revenue has more than doubled since 2001, he said. Last year saw a 50 percent increase in steel imports and a 13 percent increase in scrap steel exports.
Although part of the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, which leases its site at Terminal 1 from the port, is potentially in the path of a new I-5 Interstate Bridge, the hotel spent $1.7 million in upgrades to the facility and its 160 rooms, for which the port named it winner of its Facilities Improvement-of-the-Year Award.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v645/SeniorChieftain/network1.jpg
Was The Port Lying to US on Feb 21st or are they lying to us now?
Date: July 31st, 2007
Below is a draft of the statement I made at the League of Women Voters Tonight. Below that is an article Published in the columbian on February 21, 2007 in which Port Director, Larry Paulson stated that the port had already purchased the Alcoa/Evergreen Property and had made financial arrangements to complete in 2009 the Rail Road Expansion. Please read both carefully.
L. M. Patella
CDR USN (ret)
Comments made at League of Women Voters debate.
Why should you vote no on the on the Port of Vancouver’s Industrial Development District Levy. The answers are quite simple. First of all The Port of Vancouver attempted, without your vote, to impose a property tax rate that represents a 132% increase over the current tax rate the Port now collects. Only a successful petition drive by the people has allowed your voice to be heard. Second the Port, in my opinion, is misleading the voter.
In what appears to be a good old fashion “deal con-cocked in the proverbial smoked filled backroom”, Port Commissioners met on a Friday and signed a deal on the following Monday without seeking any input from the taxpayers and imposed a 132% property tax increase that would net them some 78 million dollars to buy a 48 million dollars property that has been on the market for years with no other apparent buyers.
Why? The Port’s answer is they want to create jobs. Yet, there appears to be some confusion on just how many jobs will be created. Larry Paulson claims 15,000 jobs, Val Ogden 6000 new Family wage jobs, The columbian is reporting 2000, and others are looking at 1853.
The port also has also neglected to inform the voters that the rail project they are proposing and the purchase of the Alcoa/Evergreen property may already, as reported in the columbian on February 21, 2007 be a done deal.
And if it is not a done deal what happened between Larry Paulson’s announcements made during his annual Port Report to a packed audience at an Inn at the Quay Breakfast and the hastily put together IDD Property Tax Levy weeks later. That report was published in the columbian on February 21, 2007.
Here are a couple of quotes from Mr. Paulson’ Report: A Copy of the Article is available is provided below.
“The Port of Vancouver could potentially generate another 15,000 additional jobs resulting from the development of columbian Gateway, the newly bought Alcoa/Evergreen site on the Columbia River and the new light industrial properties in Fruit Valley”,
“The Alcoa/Evergreen property was bought this month (February 2007) by the port and is being finance by a property tax-based industrial bond issue”
“The Port recently initiated a $60-to $70-million rail improvement project, being financed both privately and by the port, that will provide direct access to all port tenants. The Project, to be completed in 2009, will result in a dramatic decrease in rail congestion on the west coast and on lines leading from Vancouver to Chicago in the east and Houston in the South”.
These ladies and gentlemen are Pre IDD Levy Decisions and Pre Petition Drive statements. If I were, an attorney my next question would be, was the port lying to us in February 2007 or are they lying to us now. What happened Between February 21, 2007 and that closed door meeting on a Friday night weeks later that caused the Port to rush into a Monday agreement to Raise our Property Taxes. What ever it was, we are not being told.
In any event, it makes all the port’s and Citizens for strong Economy claims, statements, TV Ads, posters, Flyers, and yard Signs suspect.
Paulson also was quoted in the columbian as declaring the Port profitable in 2006. Revenue’s he said have more than doubled since 2001. Why then do they now need to raise our taxes.
And last but not least a no vote on the Ports outrageous attempt to impose new taxes without a vote of the people will send to all elected officials that they should not impose tax increases without first securing public input and comment.
Your Vote No is a must. At the rate your property taxes and other taxes are increasing you will, in the not too distant future, no longer own your home; you will be renting it from the Government.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Port of Vancouver bustling, projects
will double employment to 32,000 jobs
Published in the columbian February 21, 2007
Port of Vancouver executive director Larry Paulson today opened his Port Report to a packed breakfast audience in the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, declaring that “the port’s role is to provide family wage jobs, jobs that pay enough to buy a house.”
“We believe we can create enough of these jobs to help form a defining moment for our community,: Paulson continued, “Imagine a time when thousands more Clark County residents can work close to home. We believe that time is now.”
According to Paulson, the port today contributes over 15,500 jobs, with 6,000 of those jobs directly on port property.
“The Port of Vancouver could potentially generate another 15,000 additional jobs resulting from development of Columbia Gateway, the newly bought Alcoa/Evergreen site on the Columbia River and the new light industrial properties in Fruit Valley,” Paulson said.
"The Alcoa/Evergreen property was bought this month by the port and is being financed by a property tax-based industrial bond issue".
"The port recently initiated a $60- to $70-million rail improvement project, being financed both privately and by the port, that will provide direct access to all port tenants. The project, to be completed in 2009, will result in a dramatic decrease in rail congestion on the west coast and on lines leading from Vancouver to Chicago in the east and Houston in the south", Paulson reported.
Paulson declared the port profitable in 2006. Revenue has more than doubled since 2001, he said. Last year saw a 50 percent increase in steel imports and a 13 percent increase in scrap steel exports.
Although part of the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, which leases its site at Terminal 1 from the port, is potentially in the path of a new I-5 Interstate Bridge, the hotel spent $1.7 million in upgrades to the facility and its 160 rooms, for which the port named it winner of its Facilities Improvement-of-the-Year Award.