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by Joe Kirkpatrick
Just when you think your tax dollars are being wasted, it is good to find out at least some of them are going to good use. After a recent hiking trip to Lookout Mountain, I took a short cut back to the interstate through Alton Park, formerly one of the roughest areas in Chattanooga. Half way through the neighborhood, I came upon a large upscale condo development that has recently been built in the area. In fact, it reminded me very much of a similar style development I had seen down in Key West. Very nicely landscaped, wide paved streets with tall, expensive, wrought iron street poles with globe lamps throughout the development, everything done first class. Then, as I got to the far end of this beautiful development, I saw the sign: "The Villages," and underneath printed "Chattanooga Housing Authority."
When I returned home, I began to research "The Villages." It was completely paid for by a $35 Million grant from the federal government. Each one family unit cost around $185,000 to complete. If you read my column often, you know I love the term "lets do the math." Take five thousand middle class families of four who had an income of $80,000 last year. Based on that income after deductions, each of those families would have paid approximately $7000 each in income tax. So in essence, the federal government took 100% of the income taxes those five thousand families paid last year to build an upscale housing project in Chattanooga, Tennessee for people who historically pay no income tax. I guess the politically correct term for this is "spreading the wealth."
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