HomeMy WebLinkAboutCatherine Stein Letter 7-19-2010.PDFJuly 19,2010
Board of Trustees Meeting, Village of,Cayuga Heights
The Fall newsletter for the Village of Cayuga Heights provides an estimate of the costs
for the deer-killing program of $l million. I am not sure how many of our residents have
foaused on how expensive this proposal will be foi the individual property owners in the
village. As one of those property-owners, I am appalled to think that I will be forced,
through a substantial tax increase, to pay for this pxpensive, potentially dangerous, and
eth ically/moral ly-q uestionable prog ram.
The Village Board estimates that it will be spendi4g that $l million of our tax money to
bring in sharpshooters to kill deer in Cayuga Heigfrts every year for the next 10
yeiars. The newsletter states, that this will require a continual 5% tax increase on our
property tax for this item alone. The report then tries to make the cost easier to swallow
by stating that the $l million would be spread ove4 10 years, and would thus cost only
$6E a year for a Cayuga Heights resitlent whose lhome is assessed for $250,000.
But according to the Tompkins County Dept of As$essment, the average assessment for
a home in Cayuga Heights was $355J145 in 2009f Idon't have time to do the math right
now, but you can. .. a 5/" rise spanning 1 0 years only to f und the deer-killing program.
Moreover, there is no guarantee that fhe proposed killing program will work, and that the
deer problem will be solved in 10 yeafs, so the costs are likely to go on and on. That
has been the experience in other cor4munities.
I am angered that this substantial tax increase will be built into my tax bill year after year
and I don't understand why there is not an uproar from our local property owners. Do
they want to be made to pay for this?
I understand there are deer-human gonflicts in Cayuga Heights, and residents vary in
their perception of how serious this ploblem is. But hiring in sharpshooters and raising
homeowners taxes substantially to fi4ance this program...?
I am willing to address the deer problem on my property in my own way, and at my own
cosf, without putting the cost onto my neighbors'tax bill. Furthermore, other residents
should not impose fhefu solution on me and everyone else, and make us pay for it. I am
sure that there are many others who feel this way, regardless of their feelings on the
ethics of the deer-killing program.
I urge the concerned taxpayers to meike their opinions known to the Village Board before
thei Board increases our already high Cayuga Heights property taxes by another
$l milliion.
Catherine Stein
'11 Spruce Lane, Cayuga Heights, lthgca NY