Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/360116
VOTE FOR RAMIREZ AND SNYDER IN REPUBLICAN PRIMARY EDITORIAL Supporters of Alan M a i o a n d P a u l Caragiulo have suggested that prospective changes to the county's 2050 Plan should not be the sole criterion for choosing a candidate, given that the county has almost a billion-dol- lar annual budget. But they are wrong. Proposed revisions of the 2050 Plan, espe- cially those that would remove or even weaken the so-called "fiscal neutrality" facet, have the potential to cost county taxpayers millions of dollars in extra taxes and infra- structure fees over the next decade or two. Under the current plan, those costs would be born by developers necessitating the additional infrastructure as a result of their new developments. A majority of the current County Commission — and both Maio and Caragiulo — want to change that. Such a shift will benefit only the developers' profits, as those costs would be laid in the laps of existing county taxpayers. The 2050 Plan was one of the most exhaus- tively vetted changes in public policy in recent memory. It was developed at the request of developers, who wanted to create larger developments than the 5- and 10-acre "ranch- ettes" that were allowed in the county east of Interstate 75. After several years of study and input from all stakeholders, the 2050 Plan was developed as an overlay zone to grant the developers' request. It allowed for more housing density, as long as a number of conditions were met, including OPINION