A taxpayer’s take on city of Kingston

Dear Editor: Now that Kingston Mayor Steve Noble and Common Council Majority Leader Rennie Scott-Childress have told us how much they did in 2018 and their plans for 2019, here’s how this city resident and taxpayer sees things.

We are a bedroom community; we have have no high-paying industry. Lacking industry, we have a lower-than-average income. We are an aging community because, as young people graduate, they leave the area to pursue their goals elsewhere.

For retail outlets, we have mom-and-pop stores and franchised food outlets. We have New York City developers buying vacant buildings for low prices and converting them into offerings the current residents with their current incomes could never use. We have government agencies that give tax breaks to the same developers and pass the remaining tax burden onto current city residents.

We have a fixation for affordable housing that results in rental units that current city residents can’t afford without government assistance.

We have a collapsing infrastructure that results in road surfaces that challenge residents and visitors alike. Lately, we are driven to demonstrate we are such a welcoming community by giving municipal IDs to anyone, including those living here illegally, to enjoy all of our benefits.

A lot different from the official view, but that is caused by living in reality rather some illusion.

Mayor and Common Council, accept reality, and plan and spend accordingly in 2019. Ronald Dietl

Kingston