Residents react positively to mayor’s sales tax and projects proposal

Feb. 07--A steady stream of Tuscaloosa residents, shoppers and workers came out Wednesday to learn more about Mayor Walt Maddox's "Elevate Tuscaloosa" plan.

More than 150 attended the come-and-go meeting at the Tuscaloosa River Market and, of those who agreed to go on the record with The Tuscaloosa News, no one said they adamantly were opposed to the plan, which calls for a 1-cent sales tax increase to fund a variety of projects.

"I just like the fact that the city is being proactive, thinking ahead and planning for all of this, not waiting for things to come," said Brian Brooker, a Demopolis resident who works as an architect in Tuscaloosa. "That City Hall and the mayor has a plan, I think it's great,"

His wife, Diane, said she appreciated the openness of the mayor's "Elevate Tuscaloosa" proposal, which is meant to upgrade, overhaul or improve education, transportation and recreation over the next decade.

The overall goal of the plan is to provide new attractions for tourists and visitors while giving job-seekers and college students more reasons to choose to live -- or remain -- in Tuscaloosa.

To fund this work, Maddox has proposed the first dedicated sales tax increase for exclusively city purposes since Oct. 1, 1991. Doing so would bring the current rate in Tuscaloosa to 10 percent and the mayor has said this increase would be earmarked solely for the $250 million in education, transportation and recreation projects detailed in the plan.

"The kneejerk reaction from everybody is 'no taxes, no taxes, no taxes,' " said Alberta resident Lib Davis. "I'm more concerned about where the money is being allocated."

Some Tuscaloosa residents and visitors alike have taken to social media to decry the plan, question its worthiness or express their unwillingness to pay more in sales taxes to help fund it.

While some have said they could support the plan, others are bothered that these tax dollars may go to facilities that they personally cannot afford to use, like the Leroy McAbee Sr. Activity Center on Loop Road.

This is the home of Focus on Senior Citizens of Tuscaloosa County, for which the mayor's plan calls for a $5 million investment to convert it into a state-of-the-art center for Tuscaloosa's seniors in an effort to improve health care outcomes and enhance activity opportunities for this segment of the population.

Others questioned the speed of the process, wondering why a plan that was publicly unveiled last week is, according to the mayor's timeline, set for a vote of the City Council on by early March, with implementation by June 1.

But few, if any, said the proposed sales tax increase was a deal-breaker, especially if it stood to benefit schools and children as the mayor's proposal lays out.

The Elevate Tuscaloosa plan calls for $9.7 million in Job and Career Ready Scholarships to prepare Tuscaloosa's next generation of workers for a technology-driven economy in an effort to retain residents within the city as well as a $4.8 million allocation to the expansion and enhancement of the Tuscaloosa Pre-K Initiative.

"If we can start them when they're young, then they will just bloom," said Gloria Hamner, a career educator who now works as the parent involvement coordinator at Oakdale Elementary school.

Brookwood High School students Haley Johnson, 18, and Kayla Bornstine, 17, attended the informational event at the urging of their government teacher, Scarlett Gaddy.

Johnson said she appreciated the mayor's proposal to invest $3.4 million into the Summer Learning Academy in order to slow summer reading loss among the city's most vulnerable students.

"As a high school student, I can say that ... when you're out of school for two months, you do tend to not really remember everything you learned, so I think that that's kind of a good idea," Johnson said.

And for Bornstine, it was the proposed $3 million to upgrade and enhance the Bama Theatre, one of the city's most prominent entertainment venues.

"I personally like the Bama Theatre idea," said Bornstine, who is in musical theater at her high school. "I think it would be nice to update and renew some of the things in there."

The mayor said he'd heard from residents with multiple views. He's just hopeful that they're listening to him, too.

"I think some people just want to know how we're spending the money, what we'll invest it in and when that will happen, so I've enjoyed getting into that type of detail," Maddox said as the community meeting neared its end. "The vast majority tonight have been supporting, but there certainly have been those who say I believe in what we've done at the city -- I just don't think that's the way.

"I respect that. And hopefully they see our logic behind this and see our business plan in making it happen. But that's why we're here: We've got to listen and respect each other and value each other's opinions."

Reach Jason Morton at [email protected] or 205-722-0200.

___

(c)2019 The Tuscaloosa News, Ala.

Visit The Tuscaloosa News, Ala. at www.tuscaloosanews.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.