The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-08-14
THE CITY TAXES.

we respectfully suggest that the city
council is making very great mistake in
fixing the tax rate at four mills on the high
assessment. The valuation has been in
creased out of all reason. 1t is not said
that the assessor has gone above actual
values, but the valuation in years past was
so low that an increase of 300 or 400 per
cent, has staggered property-owners 1t
would have been wise on the part of the
council if the tax rate had been lowered in
proportion as the valuation was increased.
1t would not have been out of the way if
the aggregate tax levied had been so per
cent, above what it was last year. The
people would have accepted the increase in
good part, and been glad of it. because they
would have understood that the necessities
called for additional expenditures. But it
arouses indignation and causes people to
feel that they are being unduly
squeezed, if not robbed outright in
the name of the law, when their tax is
Jumped in one year from $50, 900 to S2l7 ,000
The occasion for this cannot be seen by
! them. nor can they understand why there
should be so much money collected by the
corporation which has undertaken nothing
/ calling for an extraordinary expenditure of
cash.
| But there is another matter which the
council should take into account For two
or three years past we have all been sys-
tematically and industriously engaged in
the work of inducing people to come to Salt
Lake and invest capital. The many ad-
vantages as a place of residence and for
the investment of money have been pointed
out aid dilated upon, with more or less
beneficial effect. One of these advantages
was the low taxation, the writers
Of pamphlets and advertising liters
| ture generally making a strong point
of this. Last fall the stream sought wa.
turned in this direction, and it nowet
/ fairly through the winter, but in the spring
it was announced that the period of low
taxes had come to an end, the result being
sudden check to the buying Of real prop
erty by outsiders. Sales ran down SO rap
idly as to almost take the breath from TIT
dealers. The real estate agents knew ths
cause. Many of them said to the writer
of this at the time that the falling off was
due largely to the high tax threat, intend
ing investors being afraid to risk theil
money IN property which was not likely tx
increase in value in proportion to the taxes
The agents tried to talk the scare away, bu
without success, as the daily lists of sale
during the past three months have proven
The action of the city assessor il
multiplying last years valuation b,
four, and of the council in multiplying
the actual rate by two aud n half
will certainly increase the alarm of las
/, spring and drive away buyers and invest
ors. AS Mr.. HENRY w. LAWRENCE ex
pressed it to a HERALD representative thi
week, men will not buy with a view to i'm
prove their property when the taxes are s.
high that they cannot get fair interest o
their money, and they certainly will nc
buy toilet the land lie idle source of heav
/ expense.
THE HERALD fears that if the counc
shall insist upon collecting the exorbitar
tax that has been levied, 1t will prove a val
effort on the part Of the press and entel
Uprising citizens to fetch many people {
, much money to Salt Lake. Men wit
, capital are far-seeing and they know ho'
to take care cf their own quite as well g
we Of Salt Lake do. They can tell whethe
or not they Will be squeezed by the ia
. collector, and they will know just ho
much their investments will return,
t whether they will return anything, afte
n the collector has been satisfied.