Tax increase meeting Wednesday July 29

There will be a Strategic Planning meeting on Wednesday (and Thursday if needed) to discuss how to allocate the 2.25% income tax if the voters approve the .5% increase that the majority has recommended being placed on the ballot in November.

Proposed Tax Increase Council Meeting

There will be a Strategic Planning Committee meeting tonight at 6 p.m. to discuss the matter of placing a tax on the ballot in November. The four proposed Scenarios are listed in the Documents section on this web page.

July 22: Fire Audit Presentation

On July 22 in Council Chambers, starting at 6:00 p.m., the McGrath Consultants will review the results of the Elyria Fire Department audit with Council and the general public.

Trash Pickup--delayed one day this week

Trash pickup is delayed by one day this week due to the holiday weekend last weekend. Sanitation workers will work on Saturday to get back on schedule.

Upcoming Meetings--Fire Audit Results, Tax Increase discussions

On Wednesday, July 8, there will be a Public Utilities, Safety & Environment Committee meeting.

On July 22, there will be a Strategic Planning Committee meeting for a presentation regarding the results of the Fire Management Audit.

Also on July 22, Council is likely to continue the discussion regarding a tax increase proposal for the November ballot, as time is running out. August 5 is 90 days prior to the election, which is the deadline by which Council must vote to place an income tax increase on the ballot. The Council is currently reviewing four "Scenarios" for consideration, which include the three previous "Scenarios" and a new scenario that involves an income tax increase to 2.25% total, which would yield $6M. The breakdowns of each scenario (dedicated use) is also open for discussion. These Scenarios are included in the Documents section of this web page.

If you have any thoughts regarding a proposed tax increase, please contact City Council members directly or at the upcoming meetings.

Happy Independence Day!

On Independence Day, we celebrate the signing of our nation’s Declaration of Independence, signaling the birth of our new nation. These are the words that have provided the lamplight for self-rule for 233 years and counting, helping to establish the United States of America as the greatest country on the planet. Take some time to reflect upon these powerful words, drafted primarily by Thomas Jefferson, particularly the well-known paragraph set forth below:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

The fireworks display to celebrate this day began on the very first anniversary of Independence Day, July 4, 1777. It is said that the bright colors and the celebration gave hope to the revolutionaries fighting for the right to be a free country. The Star Spangled Banner, written by Francis Scott Key, talks about the “rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air” as he witnessed the bombs, rockets, and cannon fire exchanged between Fort McHenry and the British fleet during the War of 1812, which he witnessed from the deck of one of the British ships. As the battle raged through the night and in the darkness, the bombs would light up the sky and the troops could see that Fort McHenry had not fallen, as “our flag was still there.”

To this day, our Star Spangled Banner still waves over us, here in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Enjoy your holiday celebration, remember that freedom isn’t free, and be safe!

Trash pickup delayed

Don't forget, due to the 4th of July holiday, anyone who has a normal trash pickup today or tomorrow (Friday or Saturday) will be delayed until Monday. If you see neighbors with trash at the curb, please remind them.