Hamilton County Liberal Republicans 2

If you want proof that government is growing, look no futher than the buildings government occupies.

The City of Noblesville's government is growing. The proof is the land the City purchased, and the buildings on that land that were demolished or being moved. From the Noblesville Ledger story:

In February, the Noblesville Common Council approved a maximum $16.4 million
budget to build a two-story addition and renovate the existing City Hall. The
budget is based on an estimated cost of $175 per square foot.

If you want proof that local Republicans are becoming tax-and-spend brethren of the Democratic Party, look no further than the language loaded with mollifying justifications.

"We don't anticipate it will cost that much," Mayor John Ditslear said
Wednesday, pointing out that costs were estimated high.

A resident who owns a $150,000 home would pay an additional $21 in annual
property taxes in 2006 if the city approves the maximum budget. In 2007, the tax
goes up by $31, the highest increase expected during the 21 years needed to pay
off the bond issue.

The problem with this attitude, whether in Noblesville or in Carmel, is that there is a cumulative effect to be considered. This Noblesville bond will be repaid over 21 years. How many other bonds, existing and yet to be concocted, will City residents also be paying off over that time? To paraphrase Senator Dirksen, $31 here, $31 there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money.

What possible benefit will the citizens really gain from the additions to City Hall? I can't think of any, and I haven't seen any specified. I can point to the costs, though. Since it is true that if you build space for bureaucrats, the space will be filled with bureaucrats, we can expect that in addition to the cost of the building, and the cost of taking the land off the tax roll, there will be the cost of the bureaucrats- salaries, benefits, vehicles, clothing, etc.

Hamilton County Republicans continually show themselves to be fiscal liberals. This is just the latest example.