Minneapolis Businesses got hammered in the BLM riots, with over 100 business properties destroyed or heavily damaged in the riots.
But in order to get a demolition permit in the city, you have to first prepay your property taxes, money that is supposed to be spent on things like police protection that was rather absent during the riots.
The Star Tribune: Landscape of rubble persists as Minneapolis demands taxes in exchange for permits
Waiting for the property taxes to be paid when they come due in October, would give the victims of the riots an opportunity to rebuild and actually attempt to recover and perhaps make some money so they can pay the property tax. But no, Minneapolis is requiring they pay it before a demolition permit is issued so they can't rebuild until that happens.
It's yet another great way to drive business out of the city - if the riots didn't tell you it was time to go, the taxman demanding his due before you can even clean up the damage form the riot surely will.
3 comments:
WoW....they're sure not a "business friendly" government!
People will just walk away, and then move away, taking their skills and business elsewhere.
Let's see if I've got this right. You have a business that's been shut down by the state to "Crush the Curve" and you've had no revenue coming in for a couple of months. Then your business happens to be in an area where "mostly peaceful protesters" loot your business and burn your building to the ground. The police do nothing to control the rioters because the city government tells them to stand down. The city council votes to "defund" the police force making them even less able to respond to crime. For some inexplicable reason you want to clean-up your property and rebuild. The city tells you you need a pay for a permit (never seen a city permit that was free) to bring in an excavator and haul the rubble away. Then in order to get said permit you also have to pay property taxes early based on the pre-riot value of your rubble pile. Just what exactly do you get for paying your taxes, except to be a sitting duck for the next round of rioters? Why the hell wouldn't you just say f-it and walk away leaving the rubble behind and move to a friendlier city/state?
Hey Aaron;
As I understand it, that is the dilemma that "Uncle Hugo" the bookstore I believe is the name is having. A lot of businesses are just leaving. They are not rebuilding, just relocating to other states after this debacle.
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