Several members of the Kalamazoo City Commission say they’re excited about a plan to fix the city’s budget with private money, though others have expressed reservations. Donors have offered Kalamazoo $70 million to shore up its finances and lower taxes for a few years, with a possible permanent endowment to follow.
On Monday, board member David Anderson said this could be a watershed moment for Kalamazoo. He said right now the city lacks money for even basics like sidewalk repair.
“What does that say to young people who live in neighborhoods that see all around them disinvestment? That says a lot,” he said.
But Commissioner Jack Urban is skeptical that the private-money plan will work in the long term. On Monday he raised questions about whether an endowment would last. He says the city has an alternative.
“The thing that the city can do that keeps the city and its citizens most fully in control of its destiny is an income tax,” he told the commission.
The board has yet to review an official draft of a proposal. It’s expected to do so in the coming months.
