A Coincidence? I think not.

The Times had two interesting items this morning.

First it talked about yet another Town-owned building that has fallen into such disrepair that the occupants have moved out, and the presumed buyer has decided they could not afford the cost of the required renovation & repair work needed to restore the property to its proper function.  The fact that the property is in the Historic District, and is subject to various preservation restrictions further complicated the process.

The interesting part of the story is that the property was actually acquired by the Town through eminent domain in 1973.   The Town thought it was "in the Public Good" to acquire the property, but apparently not to prevent it from turning into a pile of mulch on the shores of Shawme Pond.  It was unusually brave of the Town to finally admit they couldn't afford to maintain it and attempt to sell it in 2011 -- but at that point the damage had been done.  And, even then, The Usual Suspects got up to argue WHY the Town needed to keep the falling down building.  

It's too bad the Usual Suspects hadn't made an effort to generate some real revenue for the Town over the past few decades.  It doesn't take an advanced economics degree to realize the Town has almost no commercial tax base, leaving the vast majority of the tax burden to fall on homeowners.

The "crooked road, small-town charm" mantra wears thin when you look at the rocky beaches and decrepit municipal facilities.  Who would have thought that there was no "Sand" in Sandwich?

Which brings up the second interesting item comparing the Sandwich tax rates with surrounding Towns.  I know there may be arguments over differences in Water Districts, etc. -- but still -- the difference is striking.

Chart from The Cape Cod Times 10/15/2013

I was thinking about this number as I drove through Town this morning -- behind a school bus that made an inordinate number of stops on a street with brand new sidewalks (which were not being walked upon).  I drove past a school that was surrounded by chain link fencing to prevent somebody from being killed by falling masonry and through a down town area where the lower level of the Town Hall annex has been evacuated because it floods at high tide.  I passed a Town Hall where we spent $3.5 million and ended up with a building that had less office space than the original, and a lovely meeting room with a cable TV connection that makes televised meetings look like they are being held in a cave using candles for lighting and tin cans with string for microphones.   (This part of the trip required additional care due to the ongoing $300,000 renovation of the water fountain.)

A quick trip through the Marina area featured the SS Overkill, our new (not) Free Fire Boat that we do (not) need, and a pass by what may some day be a convenience store building in the Marina area -- if the Hysterical Commission is done torturing the private party who actually want to build something, do business, and pay taxes,  in the Town.

Fortunately, I didn't see the proposed $5 million Boardwalk to Nowhere, or a massive new $15 million Library "branch" which featured video conferencing facilities, community meeting rooms, and "rooms which could be rented out for pizza parties"!  Surprisingly, We have managed to avoid a few expensive ways to burn tax dollars!

Sorry, I got distracted ...

You're asking for how much to fix the pool that was never properly maintained?

And, how much for the windows sills which are falling out because of poor construction & maintenance?  (If the windows need to be re-sealed every 5 years, I guess we found out what happens if you wait 15 years!)