MR. TIM FRITZLEY’S FLYER
Recently, Mr. Fritzley sent out a tri-fold mailer regarding the Local Option Tax information that I have been providing on Facebook and through the website www.crouchtaxinfo.com.
Some background, Mr. Fritzley was a member of the Local Option Tax committee that made the recommendations for the Local Option Tax being voted on November 2nd.
Mr. Fritzley is a principle in three of the commercial buildings in town and the developer of the Edge Resort. The Edge Resort is a project consisting of 106 condominiums, 59 RV pads, restaurant, event center with a gas station/convenience store at the intersection of Middlefork Road and Banks-Lowman Road.
In reading his flyer, Mr. Fritzley stated that his resort would raise $200,000.00 a year in Local Option Tax revenue for the city. This is an amount considerably higher than what was presented at the public information meeting. At the meeting, the Local Option Tax revenue estimated by the committee was to be $135,000.00 annually after 10 years. Maybe the ordinance should be rewritten to only apply to the Edge Resort and not the few lodging and restaurants in town. Frankley, I don’t know how anyone can budget lodging tax from the Edge Resort when the plan is to sell the units to individuals, who may or may not rent them out.
I guess Mr. Fritzley misread my comments regarding the liquor license. I asked the question “Is a liquor license the reason behind the option tax?” I provided the information that suggests that it may be one of the factors and the relationship between the annexation and the local option tax. Mr. Fritzley made accurate statements regarding the liquor license for an event center. What he left out is that this liquor license would be allowed only if the event center is in a Resort City that adopted a Local Option Tax and included a “Drink by the Glass” provision. All of those conditions are included in the option tax you are about to vote on. I have found nothing in the state statute that would allow an event center a license to sell “Liquor by the Drink” outside of a resort city. If Mr. Fritzley can provide me with that code section, I would appreciate it
Mr. Fritzley has done an excellent job on the buildings he owns downtown. They look wonderful, and they are something he and the Garden Valley community can be proud of. I do believe it is important that property owners take responsibility for their buildings and surrounding property. After all, it is their responsibility to maintain and not the responsibility of the city, regardless of where the tax dollars come from.
I am pleased to read Mr. Fritzley recognizes that the private property used as a street needs to be have the ownership and responsibility defined. As of yet, after attending the city council meeting, I have not seen any action towards that end.
I certainly don’t understand how Mr. Fritzley can state I misrepresented the sewer system. In his flyer he states exactly what I was saying. The plan is to put in a sewer system and connect it to the Edge Resort. I did asked Mr. Fritzley directly at the public information meeting when I expressed my concern that the plan was for the city to contract with him and connect to his wastewater treatment plant, thereby holding the city hostage. Mr. Fritzley reply was “I installed my own water treatment plant; I don’t care what the city does”. The response then is certainly different from today. I have never heard of a government agency asking a developer to design and build a plant capable of expansion to address the needs of another government agency.
On the issue of not communicating with Mr. Fritzley, I asked him questions at the public information meeting.
I sent emails to the committee chairman, Trevor Scheilbein on August 21, 2021 asking that the option tax include construction material, rental of off-road vehicles and bicycles. I also sent an email on the same day asking that the “Drink by the Glass” provision be removed from the proposed ordinance. I finally realized that the end point was actually the beginning and everything in between was theater. I engaged in community discussions on Facebook by asking questions and seeking more information until I was removed by the administrator.
I realized that the information necessary to make an informed decision was not forthcoming. My questions were not being answered. It got to the point that if I asked a question the response was “Come to the meetings”. Of course, the committee meetings stopped and there was only two city council meetings before it was approved to be put on the ballot. On the night the city council approved this for the ballot, they waived the rule that required two other readings prior to adoption. The website was developed to assemble information and to provide a method of dissemination.
I stand by my statements and if you carefully read Mr. Fritzley’s statements in his flyer, he is admitting to the very same things I have said.
The information I shared is not about Mr. Fritzley, it is about the process and the lack of transparency.
I do not have any financial interest in the outcome of this process. I do not own any property in the center of town, I have not designed and built a private wastewater treatment plant capable of handling the future needs of the City of Crouch.
If you are interested in the material, you can visit www.crouchtaxinfo.com.
YOUR VOTE COUNTS ONLY IF YOU CAST IT
DON’T LET APATHY GIVE THE ADVANTAGE
Regardless of your position on the Local Option Tax,
it is imperative that you cast your ballot.
Failure to cast a ballot will only makes it easier for the other side to prevail.