By Stephen Pinto
The casino recently pulled in record revenues, yet Everett taxpayers have seen a substantial increase in property taxes without further payments to the city from Encore. The situation is only going to get more painful.
Can’t say I see any real improvements in the city, either esthetically or operationally as a result of Encore’s presence.
It appears the mayor, council and the administration were short sighted on Wynn’s potential earnings.
Everyone also underestimated the mayor’s extravagant spending habits.
Wynn executives are laughing all the way to the bank while Everett taxpayers and renters are taking it on the chin.
The mayor totally blew it when negotiating Wynn’s host agreement. Let’s hope he gets it right the second time around. Should the mayor and council continue their ways of spending, then it won’t matter. There will never be a host agreement sufficient enough to satisfy the taxpayers.
It’s time for the council to take a serious stand against runaway spending.
Now let’s play stack the deck.
City elections for city council will be here before we know it. Primaries will take place in September.
It appears the mayor is once again planning to move people out and replace them with candidates who will push through his agenda, no questions asked.
There will no longer be any transparency or accountability if the mayor gets his way. Not that there is much now.
Democracy in Everett is practically dead.
A good politician can stand on his or her record and on their own two feet, they don’t need the mayor to back them.
Same goes for the mayor.
For some reason many councilors either need or want the mayor’s blessing and support in order to run for office.
That is their first mistake.
It’s then called payback time. Now you belong to the mayor and you’ll need to do his bidding for him, like it or not. Rumor has it, several councilors won’t seek re-election this year. That plays right into the mayor’s hands. He might believe he now has a free hand.
In fact, he does have a free hand.
It behooves me why councilors can’t run on their record and on their vision of what they believe is best for Everett instead of deeding their vote to the mayor.
Why do they need the mayor? Why would anyone align themselves with the mayor and his scandals?
I would prefer to lose my seat if that’s the case.
We need politicians who will represent the residents.
We need politicians who are independent. We need politicians that can think for themselves.
We need politicians who aren’t afraid to say no to the mayor. We need politicians who can collaborate effectively for the good of the city, not just the mayor.
And lastly we need politicians who believe in the oath they have taken. And practice that oath every day.
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Stephen Pinto comments on everything Everett. He is a longtime Everett resident.