YOUR COMMENTS

No Craig, people don't do it because any educated person could make far more money in the private sector and work much less hours than I do. Not running into burning buildings, fighting with drunks and getting spit on would be nice also. Grow up.
- Joe, Manchester

"A couple groups bought a few hundred signs and that was it" says Tammy Simmons. The same person who wasn't aware of the effects the cap would have on the airport (what else was missed?).

What were the "groups" she references? Would one of them be one whose members like to walk the streets of Manchester with loaded pistols in their belt? You see, this is the stuff that makes wary... who is backing and for what agenda. I was prepared to vote on this measure but paused after reading her comments in Sunday's UL.

I sincerely hope this measure works. If if doesn't and Manchester goes the way of certain former mill towns in MA, there'll be a reckoning with Tammy Simmons and other members of these "Groups."

What I don't understand is that tax cap proponents who were candidates, except in ward 10, all lost?
- Jack, Manchester

No one from Manchester Moving mentions Nashua's tax cap. last time I checked that city was still standing. My property taxes have gone up almost 2,000.00 in last 10 years. Nobody can keep up with these thieves. HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH? all they say is more! I'm bled dry, you dems ought to just run me out at gunpoint.
- rick, manchester

I won't soon forget the flyer I received with the photo of the three firemen, standing in front of a Manchester fire truck, warning me not to vote FOR the tax cap. I voted YES, and I will encourage my new mayor to take a hard look at the firemen of Manchester, their hours, what they do on the job, and whether some are abusing the taxpayers of Manchester with their second full time jobs. That flyer was sickening.
- tommy, manchester,nh

wouldn't it be a hoot, if the next house that caught fire was yours, tommy! we've fallen back on the time calender, you'd better check those smoke detector batteries.
- fpc, bedford

There are 2 sides to every story. The problem is this. I have a family of 5. My taxes are almost the same as my mortgage payment. During these bad economic times, where I, like many people, had there pay reduced and benefits downsized. I can't afford to pay any more property taxes. I worry about losing my job. Is this what you call LIVE FREE OR DIE! Sorry, before you raise taxes, there needs to be more cuts. It's the reality of life.
- Jim, Manchester NH

"What I really would like is for one person who complains about our "high" taxes and screams about wasteful spending to come forth with some rock solid examples of such spending. - David, Manchester." Okay David, look at the comprehensive annual report on the Manchester, NH Government website. We currently have a recorded general debt of $863 mil. and taxes continue to go up each year as does the debt. How is that for a rock solid example. The city raises taxes and yet fails to lower our general debt owed? It is time for a spending cap, it is time for those elected to reign in spending and reduce our debt. Want more examples. I would be happy to share.
- Robert M Tarr, Manchester

I signed the original proposal and of course voted "yes" on Tuesday. I don't mind paying my fair share, but when the aldermen go out of their way to delay the vote, this can become a major issue. Contrary to what the those aldermen who voted against it believe, this is my money and I have the right and knowledge to decide how it is spent and when to turn off the faucet.
- Troy F., Manchester, NH.

How about listing all the members of Keep Manchester Moving and their hometowns, having the complete line by line budget published in the paper, along with the compensation of all City employees to include salary, benefit costs, vacation or sick time pay, etc. Along with pension benefit plans, length of service etal and then lets compare all of that to the private sector. There are plenty of sites that can give comparable. Lets stop hiding it under the rug and let the public see where their money is going. If our current mayor kept his word about reining in spending we would not be arguing about a cap -
- Bill, Manchester

Would you like to live in a small town, near a lake, right off the highway with a beautiful river running through town?

You can buy a house in Franklin for $65,000 according to Realtor.com.

Sounds like beautiful setting, how's that tax cap working out?
- Mike, Dotriot, NH

Doesnt NH still have lowest taxes in the US? If property taxes are the problem which other tax would you prefer?
- George, Manchester

About time for a tax cap and it should be state wide. The high taxes are killing our property values. Look who the complainers are... unions, state workers, ... and everyone else that receives a salary from the taxes. I know for the most part they do a good job but there MUST be a limit on what they can take at the point of a gun from ME!
- Steve, Gilmanton

Joe,

People don't run out and become teachers or firefighters because the Unions have created such a perverted compensation stucture, where laziness and longevity go rewarded and hard work is ignored.
- Craig, Manchester, NH

Ahhh, the loud and proud Tammy speaks again with little to say. I loved her quote in the paper about wondering how the cap was written without regard to the airport. It was also written without regard for our bond rating or for a true rate of inflation. Why? Because it is indeed a gimmick and was hastily crafted. Slogans without details win out again!

A 54% vote for the cap was far from a mandate especially when 13 of the 14 aldermen voted in were Democrats and the GOP alderman, Garrity, with the most clout was voted out.

What I really would like is for one person who complains about our "high" taxes and screams about wasteful spending to come forth with some rock solid examples of such spending.

For those of you who crow about the greedy unions and raises during lean times, you fail to metion the unions suspending half their raises this year , as well as the fact that when the economy grows, the unions are willing to take small incremental increases during economic upturns. What hypocrites! I have yet to see a call for higher raises than a labor contract calls during prosperous years and yet you label hard working people as greedy for taking moderate raises during lean years.

Lowell and Lawrence did not become less desirable communities because of runaway spending or greedy unions.....and neither did Detroit for that matter. Our Mass. neighbors slid on a downward spiral caused by measures such as prop 2 1/2 and an unwillingness to keep their localities properly funded.
- David, Manchester

Claremont? Who cares about what Claremont does? A city bent on digging its own grave then asking the state to bail it out.

President Obama took that concept, renamed it 'Stimulus', and went nationwide with it.

Having lived through Claremont sticking it to the rest of NH through the Claremont Decision, I could care less if the city fell off of the face of NH.
- David R, Manchester

Hey Cindy, of all these greedy teachers, police and firemen are getting so rich, why don't you sign up instead of "suffering"?
- Joe, Manchester

I'm glad the daily bombardment of my mailbox will (hopefully) end by Keep Manchester Moving....
- Dale A., Manchester

I am so glad that I do not live in Manchester. Out of a possible 100,000 voters, only 20,00 actually voted. Just goes to show how poorly educated the city voters are, your schools will crumble, your crime will increase (as it has this past month) and your complete uneducated votes on the tap cap will leave you just like Franklin (going on 20 year tax cap) aka the armpit of NH. Go drive through there and check out things, it's no joke! Move out while you can! All of you who are celebrating will be the first to complain in a couple of months. How sad, Manchester could have been such a great city and you've all blown it. Good luck Gatsas, when people need help, your, "Who do you want me to call?" response will not help (I have experienced this personally). I hope you use your better judgement as you have in SOME cases in the past and work against your party. You don't want to be the man who ruined the city, but it looks like that is where you are headed.
P.S. The union leader will not print accurate editorial letters about tax capping (typical of this republican newspaper), so I urge you to educate yourself. When will someone be smart enough develop a paper better than this Useless Reader?
- Joy, Concord

Now if I recall Baccus's lawsuit against the constitutionality of the tax cap has not been heard yet, right? (Iwonder why they waited so long to file it?). This might still get overturned, although its more likely the suit will be thrown out as frivolous.

And it doesn't take affect till July so the Democratic super-majority has a free-bee year to establish a high tax rate to use a base for future limited increases.

And the tax cap is effectively meaningless as long as the tax and spenders hold the super-majority they just won.

Not much to celebrate in Manchester, but hey, great job Maine for overturning gay marriage. Lets get that petition going NH!
- Jim, Manchester

@Mike, Manchester
Funny you should mention Detroit. This is a perfect case study on what happens when unions are left to their own devices with a Democrat government. This is exactly what we are going to prevent Manchester from becoming with this cap.
- Wayne S, Manchester

Great a spending cap was passed in an election that featured less than 20% of those eligible coming out to vote. So now our schools will continue to go downhill. Gee our best grade school is ranked #122 in the state, impressive. Memorial is #62 out of 77 high schools in the state. And all those greedy firemen and police who risk their lives to keep us safe, we showed them.....mmmm can we close the senior center first with the cuts so maybe my 4th grader could get an actual text book......and unfortunately thats not sarcasmism its the reality at Highland, #136 on the list of best schools...in case you wondered..
- Scott, manchester

Did I miss something? When did the world come to end? Why is it that every person who comments on any article not just politics is so negative and takes everything as some form of a personal attach against them, their homes and family.

Grow up you bunch of complainers and spend more time/effort trying to enjoy life instead of finding every little thing to complain about.
- Ryan, Manchester

Finally, the people were allowed to speak and they’ve been heard load and clear.

The notion that houses will be left to burn, trash will pile in the streets and crime will run rampant as a result of this cap is ridiculous. The money’s not gone, we’re just holding our Government accountable.

Mayor elect Gatsas said this morning that the cap won’t be a hurdle. Not surprising from a Conservative who understands spending is often not a solution.
- Wally, Manchester, NH

So will the nameplate on the door to the mayor's office now read "The Lesser of Two Evils"?
- DP, Manchester

Keep cutting Manchester!

In several years when your property values have plumeted and no outside towns are sending students and money to you anymore you can revel in your low tax rate and your rundown city.

People who can afford to move out will be gone and you can rename the city Detriot, NH. You will probably have many empty houses available for sale for $20,000 like Detriot, MI.

Oh, wait, maybe there won't by that many empty houses, they will probably burn to the ground before the reduced fire staff can get there through the unplowed streets!
- Mike, Manchester

I see all this concern about services being cut but not much regard to folks struggling to pay their property tax......of which BTW, doubled at my house during the Baines years. I'd rather see a few layoff's, or better yet, better management of funds by all departments rather than see folks on fixed income cut their food or medical bills to pay property taxes. Maybe to you a couple hundred is no big deal. Look past your nose.
- Patrick, Manchester

For the folks who opposed the cap, and the one uninformed person who spoke about Proposition 2 and 1/2, the Union party line is too old and too stale to repackage for quick sale. That is why the amendment passed.

Prop 2 1/2 works, without it I would be royally screwed. And it requires a vote at the ballot box which makes a huge difference. If you want me to find waste I could pick apart any Union contract in the city and find a mountain of it.

So for the dues paying members, count the numbers on your paycheck, savor them and shut up, you already bellied up to the trough plenty.
- John G, Massachusetts

I think this amendment was well written. It still allows for capital expenditure which is important. Manchester residents did the right thing.
- Todd, Manchester

i voted for the cap and against roy because we're sick of greedy city unions getting raises when residents suffer. aldermen can't say no to unions, especially police and fire, so we'll force them to. and we voted no to baines, donovan, and roy- all "education candidates". we're sick of money going to teachers insted of srudents. stop the greed!
- Cindy, Manchester

Hopefully all the newly minted aldermen elected yesterday will take note of the charter amendment. The first time they think about voting for an override, they will be in a huge spotlight with everyone watching.

The moveon.org - George Soros - city union unholy alliance will continue to sue the residents of the city. This just shows the disdain they have for the taxpayers. We will be watching the new aldermen very closely to see how they react with these malcontents and will hold them accountable in two years.
- Wayne S, Manchester

now that the lost the vote fair and square, manchester moving hopes to get the judiciary to legislate for us by taking the issue to court. In other words, the people have spoken allright, but manchester moving didn't get the anwer they wanted so now it's court time and more money down the tubes. Let me ask them 1 question here: HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH? last time I checked, Nashua was still standing after enacting their cap.
- charles T, manchester

I hope the charter will be amended to exempt the airport from the tax and spending cap. The Scott Brooks column on page A3 of the November 1, 2009 paper discusses the airport's ability to refinance its bonds and other airport issues.

The charter amendment question mentions what takes place if an "increase in real estate values as the result of a city wide revaluation" takes place.

If real estate values decrease because of a revaluation and a 2/3 vote of all the aldermen elected to increase the tax rate does not take place, Manchester may take in millions of dollars less a year in real estate tax revenues.

I would like the charter to be amended to say

When a decrease in real estate values as the result of a city wide revaluation takes place, the tax rate may be increased so that the real estate tax revenues are the same as the year prior to the revaluation and that a 2/3 vote of all the aldermen elected is not necessary for this tax rate increase to take place.
- Ken Stremsky, Manchester, NH

"Spending will be kept in check" ..... At what expense ? ? how many less Police ... How many less Fire Fighters . . . how many less teachers .. . . . to save a few hundred dollars in your poperty tax each year ? ? again I ask you at what expense ? ? Time will tell how selfish your vote really was . . . .
- jeff, Manchester

Congrats,

Now we have guaranteed tax increases every single year. The aldermen will raise taxes every year to the max under the cap whether they need to or not so that they have the ability to keep city services going.

Jack, you think your letter was a threat? Facts can be tough to swallow. Under Mayor Waz we had closed firehouses, and schools whose test scores dropped every year.
That historical fact look it up, its not spin.
Since you think this is going to be so great, how about volunteering to have the firehouse by your house closed first. Put you money where you mouth is.

As a Republican I saw this as something that was a bad idea from the beginning. City services will be cut. People will be complaining to their respective aldermen and overrides will become the norm at budget season.

Mass did this great taxpayer control called prop 2 1/2.

Which town in Mass do you want to become? Almost all of them are dumps.
- Steve Seagrave, Manchester NH

I agree. You know that when you get a flyer with 3 firement on it, telling you that it will hurt your services, it is just scare tactics. I had even recieved a phone call last week from a fireman saying that it would cut the fire service in half and that response times would go up tremendously if the tax cap passed. Then I asked him the simple question, why is that going to happen? His response was that it COULD happen. I guess he wasn't expecting to have to actually answer the question and expected me to just take what he said as fact. There was certainly a vested interet in trying to get all of the un-knowing voters to vote in their favor. I'm still not exactly sure what it was, but I'm sure there was.
- Lyle, Manchester

Good job taxpayers! Way to go!!
- Roger W., Nashua, NH

Residents of Manchester 1- City Goverment 0

Nice job manchester.
- Dave, Manchester

I used to live in Manchester for years, until I moved to Hooksett about 5 years ago. I love when Manchester citizens continually complain about their "Outrageous" taxes.....give me a break people....you are of a small majority in the state that have EXTREMELY low taxes, and still receive top notch services. You just made a big mistake. I wish here in Hooksett we had lower taxes, but I am ok with the fact that we get what we pay for. I will not let my community suffer completely over a few dollars. Manchester will go down the tubes in the next 5-10 years because of these "activists" This Biundo Character seems like a piece of work, and you people fell for his antics. He doesn't care about Manchester OR it's future, only of his own political gain.
- Jeff W., Hooksett

I won't soon forget the flyer I received with the photo of the three firemen, standing in front of a Manchester fire truck, warning me not to vote FOR the tax cap. I voted YES, and I will encourage my new mayor to take a hard look at the firemen of Manchester, their hours, what they do on the job, and whether some are abusing the taxpayers of Manchester with their second full time jobs. That flyer was sickening.
- tommy, manchester,nh

10 alderman votes overide the"cap" Nothing changed yesterday. NOTHING.
- lank, manchvegas

I, for one, found all the ads put out by Keep Manchester Moving to be annoying and irritating. We pass a spending cap, therefore no one will come to put out my house should it catch fire? What the heck? If anything, it made me WANT the cap to pass. The priority in Manchester should be spending efficiently and not just spending. In these economic times, everyone including the city should be tightening their belts!
- Rochelle, Manchester

--
"We did what we could," said Zandra Rice Hawkins, a spokesman for Keep Manchester Moving, which opposed the cap, "but we have a case that's in front of the Supreme Court, and we will see it through."
--

Yes, they spent at least $30,000 of pure Union money trying to stop this. That was the only gimmick - trying to pass Keep Manchester Moving off as a local group of concerned residents.

Reality is that people want the city to budget the same way they do in their homes - and only spend what they can afford to.

And this passed with hardly any effort on the pro-cap end. A couple groups bought a few hundred signs and that was it. All the glossy scare mail and those silly radio ads still didn't make the cap fail. The people of Manchester have spoken - I hope this new board of Aldermen is listening,
- Tammy Simmons, Manchester

Deep breath, I voted for it. Why? Because I'm scared affording the taxes on my home. At least I can go to sleep a little better knowing that my taxes aren't going to go up beyond what I get a raise for.

So there's no "gimmick".

What there was, a concerted effort by
certain groups to manipulate the taxpayers. With some of the flyers that
came out last week I wasn't sure who was running the city, the employees or the taxpayers through their political leaders. What really sealed it for me was the flyers of the school teacher and the 3 firemen. Talk about bullying, well what came in my mailbox was downright bullying, and I don't deal very well with ultimatums and threats.

I am glad it passed, theres no garuntee
who will get elected, but at least I know
spending will be kept in check regardless.
- Jack Alex, Manchester