RE: Alturas--Bill London's post

["Bill Strand" <strand@pacsim.com>]

Mike Curley,

Many of your points are valid and are worthy of public discussion. However,
there are several misleading comments.

I do believe you are incorrect when you state that the tax money from the
park and surrounding area are being diverted from the schools. State law
does not allow tax increment financing to exclude all funds from the
schools. The majority of the taxes that would have normally gone to the
school district still do (I do not know the percentage but my memory says
80%). But 80% of the taxes from PacSim that now stands in Alturas is a lot
more than 100% of the taxes that MSD would be receiving if PacSim was in
Post Falls. And companies like PacSim would not be in Moscow if not for
Alturas.

As for the areas outside the Park that are included in the tax district, I
think people tend to forget what was in that area before Alturas came
along - a mall with low occupancy, no restaurants, etc.... The taxes that go
directly to pay of the bond and to the schools are from the INCREASE in
property value for the area. The taxes level that existed in 1997 still
follow the normal route. I am certain that you are aware of the process of
tax increment financing, but perhaps all the members of Vision 2020 are not
involved in this area.

And this does not begin to address the additional funding that MSD receives
from the employees for companies like PacSim. State funding because of
having their children in the public schools, property taxes, etc...

However you slice and dice the numbers, Alturas has been and economic asset
for the Moscow School District - a school district to which I trust my
family.

Bill Strand