Leland On way to Serf City

Town picks winners and losers: Higher Taxes, more Apartments, Little Progress

I bet you have heard have you, or maybe not? Leland is going to raise taxes by 70%. Remember all that crap they tried to feed us that development more less pays for itself? Check out what town clown manager dictates to us: “Any land you see is going to be developed.” Oh? That’s a bit confident, or arrogant, take your pick.

That so-called “expert” in Leland town management is David Hollis. He is on record stating that development will not raise taxes:

“I think that we really have to be careful about how we spend our money and what kind of risks we take with our money,” Levitan said. “We have to be really vigilant about investing it wisely and not putting a burden on the taxpayers.”

So, he lied. What do you expect from these cocktail party elites?

We should get this out of the way now: this canard govts engage in “investing” is just a sexed up way to say, “we are taking your money to purchase things we want.” Govts do not invest. They are not a financial institution, though they’d like to be. Usually you invest and get a higher return on your investment. Govts never get a higher return. Their “investments” are usually torn down decades later. In other words, govts do not invest, they make a heist—trying to direct a market where there is no market. The Soviet Union did that too. How did it work out for them? The next thing you know, they will invite Chinese businesses into the town…oh wait…that’s coming.

Speaking of Soviets: The first link in today’s post comes from the Wilmington Star-News. One thing I like to do is to educate new residents on the history of the land they moved to. A bit of background on this rag: no one in the area ever called it the Star News. The natives always referred to it as the “Red Star.” The reason? They’ve never seen a socialist idea they did not like. It was not a realiable paper, but it was the only thing present back in the day. The Red Star, you might not know, is no longer even printed in Wilmington—it comes out of Fayetteville, or Fayet-Nam as it is affectionally referred to by people who have lived here for decades. In other words, this “newspaper” has never really been a beloved place for reliable information. That must be why it nearly went bankrupt. You like lefty propaganda? Then that paper is for you, comrade.

Now back to regularly scheduled programming.

The Red Star lies to us when it states about the present budget:

After seeing a slight reduction in the tax rate in the 2024 budget (from 0.25 cents per $100 in valuation to 0.23 cents per $100 in valuation), residents raised concerns when the proposed 2025 budget proposed a tax rate of 0.39 cents per $100 in valuation -- a nearly 70% increase.

Let’s dispense with the Red-Star deception: the 2024 budget was NOT a decrease in taxes. Why? Because it was not revenue neutral.

Consider: the “journalist” at the Red Star wants us to believe that a 2 cent reduction is a tax decrease, but that “decrease” does not take into account that the valuations of homes went UP! THAT is a tax INCREASE.

A revenue neutral budget, which Leland has not ever recently implemented, means the tax rate is reduced taking into account property valuation. That means the tax bill would be the SAME as before because the valuation of land has gone up. Leland did not do that in 2024 budget, and they certainly are not doing that now.

Do you feel screwed yet?

The entire town council is on the hook here. They raised your taxes. Please sign your social security check over to them, thank you.

Let’s continue:

In 2024, a home valued at $350,000 would have paid $805 in Leland property tax. If the proposed budget for 2025 passes with the tax increase, a home valued at $350,000 will pay $1,365 in Leland property tax.

Yay, taxes are going to nearly double in Leland!

More:

The town said for each taxpayer dollar, 33 cents funds public safety, 15 cents funds public services, 14 cents funds general government expenses, 12 cents funds infrastructure and capital improvement projects, 12 cents funds debt payoff, nine cents funds information technology, and four cents goes toward the town's emergency contingency budget.

"The town of Leland is growing, and it's going to continue to grow," Hollis said. "Those revenues are going to continue to grow along with the rest of the town."

Most of the monies are going to services and such? Is that so? Or is that not the entire story here?

The big question that should leap off the page is that Hollis is now saying that revenues will increase because growth is increasing. If THAT is so, how come the town needs more of our money? It is a logical question. With more people comes a ton more money than it takes to lay new infrastructure. So what gives? There must be hidden reasons that we are not told. What is it?

This is it:

Q: There’s a 66.7% increase in the administration department’s salaries and wages. That equates to $830,445. Why are salaries increasing?

A: “That number includes salary benefits for 11 employees. There are a couple of contributing factors. One is there’s a brand new employee. There are also some positions that we had in the current year, budgeted for a half year. So, when we created the 23-24 budget, we had a January start date. So, now their full salary and benefits are being recognized in the next year. There is also a potential contract payment for contracts that were not previously assigned to the administration.

Salaries are increasing across the board. We have a professional staff and we earn a professional wage. We use the North Carolina League of Municipalities, they produce a salary benchmark every year, and we’re very comparable with others in the region. I’m not sure where the narrative came that says that our salaries are so exorbitant.”

Got that? EVERYONE gets a raise! It’s like Leland has become a liberal Republican Oprah show with Democrat guests.

Do not believe me? Here is the receipt. Everyone gets a raise in salary. EVERYONE.

Man, bribing preferred developers is a hard business.

But the finance director of the town says, nah, it’s not that. The increases are really about “services” which he says the people want:

Q: What would you say to people who are hoping to or have moved to Leland for a cheaper cost of living?

A: “We’re going to provide a level of service that we are asked to provide by our town council. The cost of the services is rising. It’s not our intention to raise taxes for people or higher the cost of living, it’s our intention to provide excellent services to the citizens. That comes with a cost.”

When unelected people start talking like this, they need to be fired. Just who is saying we need better “services?” With all due respect to this normie “expert” it is your intent to raise the cost of living, because, you are raising the cost of living.

Politicans in Leland Hem and Haw about the people, and gosh they are so emotive about our plight. Then they raise taxes on us.

Burn this into your memory: Politicians do things because they want to, and for no other reason.

If you are thinking Leland is on the same path as Baltimore, you get a prize….of being correct. Stagnation and decline, here we come! I cannot wait until we have people going all San Fran and crapping in the streets. Then, we’ll have to raise taxes again for a govt that caused all that to hire a crap force to pick it up. It’s ok, that will only be around our homes, not the homes of our govt rulers who live on cocktail hill.

But, but, Leland govt says…not everyone is getting a raise:

Q: There’s a 66.7% increase in the administration department’s salaries and wages. That equates to $830,445. Why are salaries increasing?

A: “That number includes salary benefits for 11 employees. There are a couple of contributing factors. One is there’s a brand new employee. There are also some positions that we had in the current year, budgeted for a half year. So, when we created the 23-24 budget, we had a January start date. So, now their full salary and benefits are being recognized in the next year. There is also a potential contract payment for contracts that were not previously assigned to the administration.

Do these people ever stop lying to citizens? Go to the proposed budget I linked above. The 66.7 increase goes to the department. Now, how will the department disperse those salary increases? Hmmmmmm? Oh so you say only new employees get a raise, but the people like, oh, the Finance director are getting no raise?

I am not that stupid to believe that bullshit. Prove it, Carly Hagg (what an unfortunate last name).

At any rate, 66.7% of the 70% budget increase are going to Leland town government salary increases. Full stop.

Politburo Mouthpiece Weighs In

But wait, we have a “expert” who works for the government in Wilmington (Edward Graham) to tell is the “fact” we should disbelieve our eyes because taxes really are not that high. How does he know? Soviet MATH!

“Your house is cheaper in Brunswick County and in Leland. In a relative sense, your taxes are a lot lower.,” Graham said. “But, I can still appreciate the pushback when that property tax bill goes up more than 50%. That’s just that’s a big increase, and for a number of families that could increase perhaps as much as $500 or $1,000.”

Sorry moron, they will nearly double. He’s a “Dr.” though so….it must be true. More from this “professor:”

“I can appreciate the aversion that property taxpayers in that county would have towards the increase. But, my sense of the aversion is more emotional and spiritual than mathematic or statistical because I still think that North Carolina’s property taxes in general and Brunswick County’s property taxes in particular are very, very low by national standards. They just are,”

Got that? Everyone complaining about taxes is a stupid mysticist who does not understand reality. And “educators” wonder why higher ed is dying. Just to get this straight what the Leland town council proxy mouth is saying: Our taxes are lower than the national average—an average that includes New York, California etc. Well, whew, that makes everything better!

Then he combines national with NC (not very academic, I have to say, to blow logic like this). That’s right, Brunswick is still paying less than New Hanover, Charlotte, Raleigh, etc., etc…so we should feel glad! Problem is, have you ever looked at the salaries of people around DC, to take one example? By that I mean, Virginia and Maryland, etc? They are the richest people in America, and they are all, employed by the federal govt in some way. This is what Raleigh has become on the state government level. So, sure, let’s talk average taxes and include those funded by government. Should be fine and all legit. Right?

Dear Ideate prof: everyone knows who has ever ran a study, you must compare like with like or you skew the results. At one point we find a comparison of Leland to Navassa. Seriously? Navassa has higher taxes, so we should be grateful! Ever been to Navassa? It is no comparison. Navassa is like a forgotten part of Brunsqwick. Drive through it some time and you will see that it is no like-like comparison.¹

Back to the normie prof: he states that Brunswick “in particular” has low taxes. That’s great, but aren’t we talking about Leland, or did you not understand that city and county taxes are a bit different (and combined), and some who live in both are facing higher taxes from both. Double whammy. It’s not a shock a UNCW “professor of Finance” is not all that great at math.

But it is worse. Any prof worth his salt will check their own confirmation bias by selecting a sample blindly. That is, if they are going to compare, say, two cities, they would pick randomly the cities to control for bias—it also controls for unforeseen things that would skew the numbers. This professor did not do that. He selected “like” towns without running a check on himself. This was done on purpose because he has a message—shut up, your taxes are not really that high. In other words, he confirmed his own bias, which means nothing he says is generalizable. Now that is believing in something that does not exist.

If anyone is a student of this guy, drop the class.

By the way, I noticed you, Edward, provided no data…but onto the point: The places that have high taxes are..shitholes. Raleigh is running families out of the town and pricing real men and real families out of the market; Charlotte is awash in woke policies and funding a football team with public money; New Hanover is run by a party that for 100 years has mismanaged funds and, yes, dropped bags of money off to certain people at construction sites (oh yes, I am not kidding—will have to post about that early 2000s factoid another time). I only scratch the surface in the comparisons. In other words, it’s not just the taxes per se, it is the corruption that ALWAYS comes with it. That’s not very “spiritual” is it Mr. Graham? People know what’s coming as a bonafide FACT because it is a factual pattern of all tax and spend govts. Academics love to not actually talk about reality, and what real people have to endure. Not everyone gets a paycheck from the govt. like Prof. Edward Graham.

Leland is raising taxes on people who moved here because it was unaffordable elsewhere. Nevermind, you, dear reader, pay taxes that are lower than, say, Edward’s, so it’s all good yah Edward? Tell you what, let’s swap salaries and see if what you claim is still an irrational objection, ok?

You pass? Thought so.

The one thing about government institutions—he works for UNCW—is they all support one another toward a same end. So it is no surprise someone at a college in Wilmington believes the town council in Leland is doing just fine.

You probably do not this know about UNC-Wilmington: it ruins the careers of people who are anywhere right of center, like this guy:👇

Mike Adams, RIP

To make a short of it: Mike Adams was a professor at UNCW and then found God. The left on the campus (teachers and administration) got all hysterical because an enemy was in their midst. They ran him and all other “conservatives” off the campus. The admin then tried to steal his retirement from him (essentially they violated his contract and tried to put him on the street).² This is also story for another time.

Suffice to say, yeah, I really believe a finance guy at UNCW is not trying to pull one over on us. Hard pass NPC. You have LARP’d your role well, sort of. Now back to your cushy office in your ivory tower of fairies where you can worship mystic pedophile guru’s like John Maynard Keynes.³

Leland Picking Winners & Losers

This “professor” should understand, but clearly does not, that government who picks economic winners and losers, is a government destined for failure.

The reality is, only the people, through their multifarious choices taken as a whole, is able to direct their monies to things they prefer. Markets are relatively healthy that way. A person of finance should know this. But more so, what Leland is doing is choosing how we are going to live, where we are going to live, and what will and will not be included in the town—they are choosing the businesses that will come here, and which ones will not. Look for them to make a 10 year plan soon!

Leland actually pays someone to make these choices. He’s like a town Exchequer for economics theory in a position called “Economic and Community Development.” He’s the guy who directs our money to magically develop who wins and loses and his name is Brian Sutton.

Can’t place my finger on it, but there’s a political word for that type of government.

Anyway, Leland is clearly choosing what the town should look like not the people or the market:

Continued construction and a shift toward rentals

The town approved around 3,300 residential permits in 2021 and just over 3,000 in 2022. To date in 2023, he said, that total is over 6,400.

A large percentage of those permits were attributed to the multi-family projects under construction in the Westgate area this year, Sutton said.As of early December 2023, Sutton said, the town has nearly doubled the number of new residential permits it saw in 2022 and 2021.

The town approved around 3,300 residential permits in 2021 and just over 3,000 in 2022. To date in 2023, he said, that total is over 6,400.

A large percentage of those permits were attributed to the multi-family projects under construction in the Westgate area this year, Sutton said.

So, Leland is not a town for liberty. Now I have noted that Leland prefers rental society over ownership society, and also noted, Politburo Mayor Brenda Bozeman gets a thrill at the thought of it. Well strap in, because more is on the way. In fact, single family homes in Leland are a thing of the past:

Leland once saw largely single-family home development, with an emphasis on multi-family development occurring in more recent years. Sutton predicts the town will see multi-family development continue, and it could see an increase in townhomes and duplex-style residences.

With interest rates, mortgage rates and the costs associated with owning a home, Sutton thinks the town could see a continued trend in rentals – apartments, townhomes, duplexes or even build-for-rent dingle family detached homes.

Homeownership is not for you, peasant. Just wait until Harris Teeter begins carrying only lab grown meat, and protein meals made of crickets.

But, oh there’s more:

The demand for rental properties, he said, remains high in Leland. Unlike nearby Wilmington, however, which has existing housing and rental stock, many of the residences being built in Leland are built for or by their first occupants. The housing stock in Leland, Sutton said, is younger because the town is younger.

Remember what I wrote in my last post. The problem with this statement is that it is not exactly true. The demographics in Brunswick is OLDER. So Leland is younger is not as significant compared to the surrounds. But Leland wants people to live in the pod, and older people do not, so that means Leland will get younger. Rental people do not pay that much attention to politics, so for Leland it is a win-win.

Even more so, people who own nothing are not that jealous of their money when it comes to government. They are not as “conservative” as property owners who learn how to be self sufficient by owning said property. Now, perhaps, you understand why home ownership is discouraged. leland can’t have people who 1) pay attention to politics, 2) are suspicious of taxation, and 3) who think for themselves.

Who wins in Leland are developers, corporations to siphon off renter salaries, and government employees who are on board with Leland’s pogrom. Guaranteed job protection.

Listen to this, yet another non-native, southern Floridian, and town council clown, Bill McHugh:

McHugh told WHQR that he understands why residents are upset.

"I don't blame them. This is serious. You know, a homeowner with a $350,000 home is looking at a $560 annual increase. We're not talking about pennies here. [These are] real people with real money. And that is not lost on me, that is not lost on any of us. You know, this keeps me up at night," he said. "But I'm looking at the future of the long-term health of our community. And I believe we have to act now to secure that future."

How much you wanna bet McHugh was an Andrew Gillum supporter?

But listen to his actual words. Got that? McHugh really sympathizes with you, trust him you loser citizens. It’s only that, he needs to raise YOUR TAXES in order to pay off his incestuous friends. We need to pay for making other people rich that McHugh deeems are worthy to live in Leland. No! Yes. NO WAY! YES WAY. You are struggling to make ends meet, but Leland is living fat off their salary raises. I am sure you feel better McHugh is having trouble sleeping in his cush residence, but his political opinions still make him ghey. More so GAE, I bet.

McHugh gives no crap about you. His actions demonstrate that simple fact. He states it, “keeps him up at night (liar)” to tax us sooooo much. But he’s going to do what he wants anyway. In other words, he is going to do what he is going to do because he wants to, so sit down and shut up peasant. Actions speak louder than words. McHugh is an “elitist” seeking to make his friends richer, and us poorer. There’s a political system that does that…hmmmm.

Vote. Him. OUT.

You can listen to McHugh’s disingenuous defense of himself here—his message is clear: “get on the same page as your govt leaders, serf!” Listening to McHugh, I do not think I have ever seen a more Soi representation of an effeminate man. Machiavelli had people like this pegged. Read The Prince, you’ll see a picture of McHugh under the section considering cruelty.

Some Leland residents get it, though, like this guy:

“The Town of Leland has created a wish list budget with no reference to, no sensitivity to, and no consideration of any prior budget and current revenue stream,” speaker Tom Mahoney said. “This is basically what the town plans on doing, using the residents as its credit card.”

The Town Council of Leland has mismanaged funds, and mismanaged the general growth of Leland. They are not competent enough to remain in office.

You Have the Moral Authority to Elect New Representatives

I talked to a neighbor friend. He’s based. He wants to move. Why? Because Leland is out of control. They planned all this high density blue city living he escaped from, and yet, they were not smart enough to calculate they are outstripping their capacity in traffic, and many other ways. They want us to pay for their mistakes! Yep. You mean to say, the “experts” are dumb as a box of rocks?! Now you’re getting it. That’s “expert” government! The town council message is: we do not give two-shits about the people already here. Also Correct. If they had their way, they’d start tearing down single family homes and building coffin apartments. Oh they call them “condos” here but that is a lie. A condo is what is built all along Waikiki. They are luxurious. What Leland is building are pods made of crap; you want a coffin apartment in Leland? Bozeman/Carter/McHugh will hook you up! Now, bend the knee.

Liberal Republicans and Democrats approve of all this stripping out Brunswick County character, implanting corporate chain stores, and eliminating the character of the people. Yes, THAT is GAE. Now, if you will excuse them, they have a cocktail party to go to, where, if the county government practices are any indication, they will swap their wives and girlfriends—ok, so it’s more of an open marriage thing, but I digress.

Bozeman/Carter/McHugh, and their little clown hires in the town management, are not for the people. How can we tell? Watch what they DO. They will blow smoke up your ass and say they are one of us, but when they act, they demand we bend over and say thank you for letting them dupe us as they lift our wallets from us.

The bottom line is simple: they do not care for the economic needs of the people they claim to represent. They look down on you; they sneer at you; they think they know more than you. They know nothing.

The people have trusted their elected rulers long enough. Time to wake up, and take back our consent through this little thing called elections, or recall. Sadly we cannot recall these clowns.

1. In particular the homes, and the general layout of the town is unique. There really is no comparison to Leland.

2. I need to confirm this. I am going off memory. But I know they owed him a LOT of money. When I post, on this topic I will clear some of this up.

3. Back in the day when we had few “news” outlets, this was covered up, but it is true we now know: https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/2802/was-john-maynard-keynes-a-child-moleste