City Manager David Parrish made an obtuse but meaningful statement at the Greensboro City Council meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
At the end of every regular meeting, both the city manager and the city attorney – the only two city employees who work directly for the City Council – are asked if they have anything to say.
Usually, both Parrish and City Attorney Chuck Watts say no and the meeting is adjourned.
At the Oct. 20 meeting, Parrish said he would like to make a statement concerning “Some of the emails that councilmembers have received around the proposed extension.” Parrish never elucidated what “extension” he was talking about, but it was the proposal to extend water and sewer service to a residential development in Summerfield. David Couch, a developer and the owner of Summerfield Farms, is proposing that Greensboro extend water and sewer service north of the lakes to land he owns in Summerfield on Pleasant Ridge Road. If the site had city water and sewer, that would allow the residential development to have smaller lots, townhomes and other multifamily residential options that are not practical without water and sewer service.
Parrish in explaining his response to this idea said, “This was just a discussion. The city listened just like we do for any partnerships.”
He said, “There is no intention to spend city tax dollars for any project outside the city for residential development. There is a long ways to go with this project and we are just one part of it.”
Parrish added, “There has been some misrepresentation and misinformation about this about how the city going to spend tax dollars for this and we are a long ways from doing that. We are just listening.”
Parrish noted that the city’s water and sewer utility had plenty of capacity, but that it was a finite resource and the city had to consider the future and future generations of Greensboro residents.
He said, “We have to be good stewards of that capacity.”
Parrish finished up by saying, “There is a long way away from any decision. And city tax dollars would not be used for any of that.”
Our water bill is an invoice-padders primer. Some of it is operations, some of it is hidden taxes.
This is very confusing. This developer stood in front of Summerfield Town Council and said Greensboro pays to construct water and sewer to Summerfield, noting “The county would collect the taxes from the development on our end and use a portion of those taxes to pay Greensboro for the cost of constructing the utilities.“.
He told the press a special tax would be collected over decades “by Guilford County and partially used to reimburse Greensboro for the cost of building the infrastructure.“
The Summerfield Mayor met with Mr. Parrish about Greensboro constructing water and sewer to Summerfield and reported back “ Greensboro leadership felt this was doable depending on water and sewer capacity. It is similar to what they have done for other areas of the county such as in the southeast area. ”
So, now Greensboro says taxpayers won’t pay and there is misinformation? If there is misinformation, it is from Mr. Couch or Greensboro. The public is just listening to the plan they have been told.
So IS Greensboro paying to construct the water and sewer (as through a bond which taxpayers still pay for)? Or was the developer just assuming the City would front tens of millions of dollars to construct the utilities? Someone is incorrect here. Because Couch said repeatedly Greensboro pays for up front construction costs and Parrish says not.
There is misinformation, BUT NOT by the public. It’s by someone involved in this plan. Behind door meetings took place and someone suggested Greensboro taxpayers would construct the water and sewer. Maybe that’s not happening now, but who knows?
The public just wants straight answers. This will cost $30,000,000 to $50,000,000 apparently. Greensboro says they aren’t paying. Couch said Greensboro is paying. Summerfield says they don’t have the money…who is paying??? Taxpayers in Greensboro, Guilford County and Summerfield deserve an answer before ANY leader wastes more time on a project where no one knows who’s footing the bill.
About this water…Tell B.J. to build his own dam water system. He knows every dam thing about it. The City of Greensboro still has dam questions about it. No one else gives a dam how they get it up there. If they ever figure it out we can all take a dam tour.
Technically a correct answer, but completely misleading. No utility extensions are made with tax money, it all comes from the water and sewer enterprise fund.
What’s wrong with that?
Well lots when you realize that Greensboro citizens have been getting ripped off for years as the revenue from these water and sewer rate increases are used to help the elites develop their pet projects and not being reponsible for the cost of getting utilities to the site
Meanwhile, in town, the infrastructure continues to crumble, a much more responsible place to spend money.
So the statement that “tax” money is able as meaningful and truthful as saying “lottery” money won’t be used