Fargo Diversion
Mayor Walaker met with Pomeroy’s very successful challenger, Republican Rick Berg, the morning after the election. The mayor told both Jay and Shelby that Mr. Berg has a lifetime of investment in the Fargo community. Berg told the mayor that the diversion is the top priority when he goes to Congress in January. Mr Berg is quoted in the Fargo Forum on Sunday, November 7, 2010 as saying “The last thing I wanted to do was make this flood thing partisan in any way,” “I want to work together.”
All local leaders are wondering what the defeat of the democrats will mean for the Red River Valley. The mayor states that only “time will tell.” The mayor told us that having more republicans in office than democrats has not been the case since the 1960’s! He quoted his grandfather, “in North Dakota, there should be a democratic legislature and a republican governor.” We then discussed the fact that so many politicians come from Casselton.
He thoroughly discussed the diversion and why it is so important. The project really is something of “top priority” to him. He stated that it is a big issue, a big problem and people have to understand the costs. It is imperative for the state’s economy that the Red River is protected. Funding for the project must come from several places. Fargo consumers will pay 7.5% sales tax starting April 1 when a Cass County’s half-cent rate approved by the recent election takes effect.
Sales tax is “the lesser of two evils when it comes to taxes,” because it spreads the cost to everyone who uses the city’s streets and facilities, not just the residences, Walaker said. The mayor quoted a familiar phrase with a new word “personal”, people vote with their personal checkbook. The total costs must be spread over many sources. It was an interesting thing to find out that the recent senior citizen project on 7th Avenue North was funded by 80% federal money.
Cass County Commissioner Scott Wagner is quoted in the Forum on November 7, 2010 as saying that “Hoeven will hit the ground running on this issue (diversion).” Local leaders also have returning Minnesota lawmakers, such as Collin Peterson and Amy Klobuchar to continue their support of the diversion project.
The recent passage of the sales tax to pay for a portion of the diversion is a huge vote of confidence for the diversion project. “The fact that … our citizens have voted not once, but twice, to tax themselves, have raised and secured the local dollars necessary for the project like this, I think that speaks volumes,” Wagner said.
All local leaders are wondering what the defeat of the democrats will mean for the Red River Valley. The mayor states that only “time will tell.” The mayor told us that having more republicans in office than democrats has not been the case since the 1960’s! He quoted his grandfather, “in North Dakota, there should be a democratic legislature and a republican governor.” We then discussed the fact that so many politicians come from Casselton.
He thoroughly discussed the diversion and why it is so important. The project really is something of “top priority” to him. He stated that it is a big issue, a big problem and people have to understand the costs. It is imperative for the state’s economy that the Red River is protected. Funding for the project must come from several places. Fargo consumers will pay 7.5% sales tax starting April 1 when a Cass County’s half-cent rate approved by the recent election takes effect.
Sales tax is “the lesser of two evils when it comes to taxes,” because it spreads the cost to everyone who uses the city’s streets and facilities, not just the residences, Walaker said. The mayor quoted a familiar phrase with a new word “personal”, people vote with their personal checkbook. The total costs must be spread over many sources. It was an interesting thing to find out that the recent senior citizen project on 7th Avenue North was funded by 80% federal money.
Cass County Commissioner Scott Wagner is quoted in the Forum on November 7, 2010 as saying that “Hoeven will hit the ground running on this issue (diversion).” Local leaders also have returning Minnesota lawmakers, such as Collin Peterson and Amy Klobuchar to continue their support of the diversion project.
The recent passage of the sales tax to pay for a portion of the diversion is a huge vote of confidence for the diversion project. “The fact that … our citizens have voted not once, but twice, to tax themselves, have raised and secured the local dollars necessary for the project like this, I think that speaks volumes,” Wagner said.
