Decades ago, a local city gobbled up all the satellite cities that depended on the city for water, and sewer. They used the powers allowed by annexation, and now had what was considered at the time some new, good tax revenue.
Over time, the now larger city, as most larger cities, mishandled the tax money, allowed critical infrastructure repairs to be placed on the back burner, and chased anyone with any sense away. The gains now are liabilities, since the property values are not what they should be, and once prime real estate is filled with dilapidated homes.
I'm sure this isn't an isolated occurrence. Cites are run by politicians and bureaucrats. Neither is really useful for much of anything, and a less polite society would have bounties on both.
Detroit?
ReplyDeleteNo, but the devastation is probably the same. The decay was expedited by two hurricanes, and the flood from Harvey. Even now, with heavy rains, the ditches blocked by debris from gutted houses causes those that have remodeled to flood again. The drain pipes were already in bad shape, and full of dirt, so the added blockage didn't allow enough drainage.
DeleteThe decades of neglect have caught up with the current parasites of tax dollars.