Quincy Quarry Weekly Fish Wrap: Normally, three strikes and you’re out …

– Quincy News from Quincy Quarry News with commentary added.

Rung up!
Image via USA Today Sports

Quincy Quarry Weekly Fish Wrap: Normally, three strikes and you’re out …

This week the Koch Maladministration whiffed at the plate. 

Whiffed big time.

First up this week, Quincy Mayor Thomas P. Koch rolled out his 2021 tax increase.

This was quite a piece of Kochonomics, even per Team Joch standards.

Have I got a deal for you, drink the Koch-Aid – whatever
A Facebook photo

The spending increase for the FY2021 budget approved last spring was $10 million more than the authorized FY2020 budget amount and Mayor Koch concurrently made much of how it was his goal to not increase local property tax bills come the New Year.

Instead, not only will local property bills go up by roughly 2.5% next year — roughly $6 million in total, the mayor is concurrently drawing down $8.2 million from reserve funds and variously cutting spending by a bit over $5 million even if New Growth development is projected to be providing $6 million in increased tax revenue to cover the net adjusted nut of but a $5 million spending increase during FY2021 from FY202 spending instead of the original $10 million increase approved last spring.

Follow the money.  ALWAYS FOLLOW THE MONEY
An oxycom.com image

If readers cannot follow the math, not to worry as such is why the ever-growing legions of Quincy Quarry readers read the Quarry as they know that it knows how to follow the money.

For example, while it is raining COVID-19 cats, dogs, cows, and elephants; the Koch Maladministration is dumping even more excuses.

All manner of the most curious of excuses.

Wicked curious excuses.

Pinocchio Walkbacker, bon vivant
An old Facebook selfie

Short form, the mayor’s spokesmodel Pinocchio Walkbacker, along with the mayor’s overly well-paid financial prevaricator, stated that the need to tap the city’s meager reserves and so risk the city’s credit rating, along with other drastic measures, were necessary given that payments to the city were running late and other costs were piling up but that the mayor had been led to believe that both the payments and federal aid should be coming.

So what, apparently, for when the payments might be made as well as for the fact that Washington politicians have long been dithering about what next to do in the way of another COVID-19 aid bill.

In other words, the mayor’s game plan is to basically assume that checks are in the mail even if he currently has no idea as to when they might arrive, much less how much they will total up to be.

Disorder in the court yet again …
An old Columbia Pictures images

Next up, the City of Quincy yet again got spanked in court. 

This time it was over how the Quincy Conservation Commission had improperly denied the City of Boston duly compliant application to rebuild its Long Island Bridge on its dime.

So far, Mayor Koch has spent at least $400,000 in taxpayers’ money to play the delay game and so play to local nimbies on Squantum. 

So what, apparently, for the fact that Long Island is a mile or more away from Squantum backyards.

In any event, in response to this latest of all but innumerable court rulings against the City of Quincy, a petulant Mayor Koch announced that he is now pondering filing an appeal and other steps on top of other ongoing delaying tactics running who only knows at what further cost.

Will Boston taxpayers insist on reimbursement of unwarranted legal and other expenses?
A file photo

Also unknown is if the City of Boston will add to the financial pain for local taxpayers by asking for the reimbursement of its legal and other related expenses.

And finally, with three days still left in the week this week, on Thursday the Massachusetts Department of Public Health moved Quincy into COVID-19 Red Zone status.

So far, however, Quincy Quarry is not aware of any official statement from the Koch Maladministration as regards this grave milestone.

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