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Dear Editor:
On Monday – Tax Day – the Carmel City Council will learn its redevelopment commission estimates that property taxes and other payments in lieu of taxes from its centrally planned projects will total $34 million this year.
Earlier, the redevelopment bunch told the State of Indiana its 2022 debt payments would be $49 million.
Carmel councilors may ask what taxpayers will cough up the other $15 million.
They could ask the mayor, but he only shows up infrequently, knowing in advance how the council will act.
Of course, the redevelopers and the administration account to the state not for all 76 bonds outstanding but for just 52.
As for the 24 unlisted bonds – with balances of about $150 million and a 2022 payment of another $22 million – the city’s controller claims these are developer debt. “The city does not owe the money, it is not included in the annual financial report,” said the controller.
What?
Carmel has $1.5 billion in outstanding debt according to information the city provides the state.
Perhaps the city council should declare all of that “developer debt.”
What a gift on Tax Day 2022.
Bill Shaffer
Carmel