THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 8, 1995 TAG: 9506060064
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
According to a story in The Virginian-Pilot on May 24, the city budget for FY 95-96 includes a 2-cent real estate tax increase. Mention was made that this increase was the first in five years.
What is never mentioned when a real estate tax is approved is the large increases caused by the yearly assessments. Since 1987, our annual taxes have more than doubled due to increased yearly assessments. With such increases in assessments, why is any tax increase required?
The Virginian-Pilot article also mentioned the fact that an outside auditor said the city's high real estate tax hurt Norfolk's ability to attract businesses. Many of Norfolk's city employees are also not attracted to the city and reside in other adjacent communities.
By raising real estate taxes and fees for city services, our city administrators are causing undue hardship to many of the elderly and those on fixed incomes.
Myron O. Wilcox
Lucian Court Misplaced priorities
Animal Control has its priorities confused. While Norfolk has numerous unwanted stray dogs roaming and breeding in many neighborhoods, Animal Control is ticketing Ghent residents exercising their dogs.
Why not respond to nearby Park Place citizens' complaints of packs of stray dogs creating havoc? There are also feral dogs roaming at large on school grounds and playground areas in Chesapeake Manor, directly behind Animal Control's headquarters. Instead of harassing responsible dog owners with heavy fines, Animal Control should live up to its name and control these potentially dangerous dogs.
Christine Rossell
Mallory Court Questioning school policy
Norfolk Public Schools has a 10-day policy that says if a student misses 10 days, you automatically fail unless you have documentation that you had a doctor's appointment or death in the family.
If you stay home because you're sick but you may not go to the doctor because you don't have any insurance and so your mother writes a note saying you were sick those days and they don't excuse it, then you fail for the semester. Also, your teacher can make a mistake and mark you absent when you were there. This happened to me at the end of the semester. I got my last report card and it said I missed 10 days for two of my classes but I had only missed seven.
I had to go through all my papers that I saved and find the dates for a teacher to prove I was there. If I hadn't saved those papers, I would have lost two credits. I would have graduated late because I can't afford $82.50 for summer school.
The other teacher never handed back papers so I had to go to my counselor and talk with her about the days my teachers claimed I had missed. My counselor looked on her computer and it printed out I missed seven days. I had to run around for two weeks to get my days and classes straightened out. This policy is doing more damage than it is helping anything.
Charmaine Banks
East Liberty Street by CNB