Berwyn mayor, City Council need to work together
This is in response to the article in the paper (Berwyn Life, Nov. 26) where city officials are considering adding a 5 percent increase to property taxes on top of already high property taxes.

It seems to me that although the town of Berwyn is, in the city’s own words, “in crisis” with the housing foreclosure rate and extraordinary number of abandoned properties, what may I ask does your office think is going to happen if you do something as stupid as this?

I ask because while the administration seems to have a shortage of funds, do you really believe that by taxing the homeowners of Berwyn to the point of no return this is going to cover the shortage? And what happens when the remaining homeowners can no longer afford to pay the taxes required to live here? Then what, or was this not a tough process?

Shame on all of you for not taking a hard look at the people who you are supposed to be representing in this town. This is a working class, blue collar town with good people, but you seem to want the urban, white-collar person for whom Berwyn does not offer the amenities that group accepts as normal for the price they pay.

Maybe instead of attempting to put us out of our homes by taxing us until we can no longer afford to live in Berwyn, the City Council should honesty look at ways to trim the budget and use the money they do have wisely. For instance, we on the 1400 block of Harvey Avenue still do not have our alley paved and it’s been at least two years, and contrary to being told we were not on the city’s list to have an alley built. Where did that money go?

So, in conclusion, maybe you, Mr. Mayor, and the rest of the City Council should look to preserving what is left of Berwyn as opposed to turning this town into a clone of the city of Chicago, where high prices rule, and the governing body does not seem to govern for those people who elected them.

Pat Groves, Berwyn