by William Skink
Should Democrats get their defense off the field? Pete Talbot thinks yes, yes they should:
The refrain I’ve been hearing lately is that Montana Democrats need to do outreach to rural counties but should avoid topics like abortion, minority and LGBTQ rights, and environmental issues. They should focus on jobs and the economy.
Of course they need to visit the likes of Prairie, Treasure, Carter and Golden Valley Counties, and deliver a strong economic message. But they need not abandon their moral duty to women, the disenfranchised or Mother Earth.
It’s time for Democrats to go on offense and ask our country folk what the Republican Party has done for them lately.
While this strategy conceptualized by a Missoula Democrat gets floated out there about how to talk to them good ‘ol country folk, a little defense from Missoula Democrats might be necessary to protect their own end-zone from getting scored on.
The effort by Missoula City Council to alleviate property taxes with an educational donation scheme is moving forward. Spearheaded by Julie Armstrong–the councilperson who was simply shocked she had lots of aging, anxious seniors in her district dismayed at ever-increasing property taxes–Betty’s Fund will be a donation-based duplication of services that will require paid city staff to screen applicants for funds, should they materialize.
While City Council panhandles donations for property tax relief, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency hooked up a bank with over a million dollars:
On Thursday, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency’s Board of Directors approved $1.5 million in tax increment financing to reimburse the bank for a portion of the work. The package is contingent upon MRA’s ability to put together an acceptable financing package, which would be paid to the bank over time.
Thanks MRA, helping banks getting built really helps the public! What would we do without the MRA to grease the skids for the private sector?
While agencies like MRA help to midwife half a billion dollars of investment in Missoula, the cost of housing continues to outpace wages. Whatever shall we do? I know, how about turning to an enabler of this situation to fund another study?
“A lot of Missoulians are facing decreasing opportunities to find obtainably priced housing,” said Sam Sill with the Missoula Organization of Realtors. “This lack of affordability disrupts housing options across the income spectrum and has negative effects on the workforce, the economy and our quality of life.”
Joined by the Missoula Chamber of Commerce, the Missoula Economic Partnership and the city and county, MOR has launched a new housing study and expects to have the results by August.
“What we’re really trying to do here is take a look at the barriers to developing more obtainably priced housing and what are the solutions,” said Sill. “We want this to be something the local governments look at in terms of evaluating regulations, and also make developers aware of the tools out there that may be underutilized.”
Sure, take another look at this, MOR. Then enlighten us on the barriers to developing more obtainably priced housing in Missoula.