In her letter to the editor Feb. 21 (“Let’s be good neighbors”), Connie Carlson accuses columnist John Diers of a “grossly erroneous statement” concerning the potential future loss of $1.25 million in local tax revenue if the Menden property that was purchased by the SMSC is placed into tax-free trust. She continues by saying that Diers “seems to have grand plans for development” of the property to justify the potential tax loss.
If Ms. Carlson had taken the time to review city documents before writing her letter, perhaps she would have learned that the city had already spent thousands of consultant and engineering dollars developing a specific plan for the Menden property. The “grand plans” as she called them were City Hall plans, not John Diers’. Also, the $1.25 million in lost tax revenue (if the land goes into tax-free trust) came from a city management staff report. The $1.25 million was based on the staff’s forecast of the city’s loss of tax revenue, when added to the loss to the county and school district. John Diers was the messenger, simply referencing information prepared by city management. Shooting the messenger doesn’t change the facts. Read more from Prior lake American