4 ms·

I'm guessing it's a funding issue, and there isn't the tax base locally to pay for fixes. Combined with aging infrastructure and changing climate, I expect a lo

I'm guessing it's a funding issue, and there isn't the tax base locally to pay for fixes. Combined with aging infrastructure and changing climate, I expect a lot more of this in years to come. I wouldn't turn to companies to solve it though, we should be ensuring our tax rates are sufficient to repair and replace our roads, bridges, sewers, etc.

jimkri 7y ago
I think the tax base is the leading factor in this as well. The state would care if the people had more money. I agree that correct tax rates would help in this situation, but I also feel that the towns that are contributing more in taxes will see the improvements over towns that have less money. Its a hard problem because I also don't know how a private company would be able to fund these projects.
MikeAmelung 7y ago
It's not just funding, it's also that the local government in these areas is entirely corrupt. Any money they do receive from above or collect from below is sure to be siphoned one way or another. If it wasn't so un-American, I'd suggest the only way they can be saved is to have the state or feds take over, like too many of our school districts around here. Then again, every governor of IL goes to jail, so maybe just the feds.
- nkrisc 7y ago
  Only 4 of the last 7. Give credit where credit is due: nearly half have managed to not get caught.
- ghostbrainalpha 7y ago
  "Metro East, the city of East St. Louis had always served as more of a legal shell for corporate privilege—low taxes, nonexistent regulation, minimal public services—than a fully functioning city. By the late 1980s, the city’s sewer system was failing, and the city government was being sued by the EPA for misusing federal funds that had been earmarked for its repair." Corruption was a big part of the problem. But the root goes deeper. This was always a fake town, a hollow shell built to serve the interest of a business that no longer exists. I know this sounds cruel but the sewage is only a symptom of a larger problem. The Fed shouldn't step in to fix the sewers, they should step in to assist in relocating the residents somewhere else and let the ghost town sink into the fetrid swamp.

jimkri 7y ago

I think the tax base is the leading factor in this as well. The state would care if the people had more money. I agree that correct tax rates would help in this situation, but I also feel that the towns that are contributing more in taxes will see the improvements over towns that have less money. Its a hard problem because I also don't know how a private company would be able to fund these projects.

MikeAmelung 7y ago

It's not just funding, it's also that the local government in these areas is entirely corrupt. Any money they do receive from above or collect from below is sure to be siphoned one way or another. If it wasn't so un-American, I'd suggest the only way they can be saved is to have the state or feds take over, like too many of our school districts around here. Then again, every governor of IL goes to jail, so maybe just the feds.

nkrisc 7y ago
Only 4 of the last 7. Give credit where credit is due: nearly half have managed to not get caught.
ghostbrainalpha 7y ago
"Metro East, the city of East St. Louis had always served as more of a legal shell for corporate privilege—low taxes, nonexistent regulation, minimal public services—than a fully functioning city. By the late 1980s, the city’s sewer system was failing, and the city government was being sued by the EPA for misusing federal funds that had been earmarked for its repair." Corruption was a big part of the problem. But the root goes deeper. This was always a fake town, a hollow shell built to serve the interest of a business that no longer exists. I know this sounds cruel but the sewage is only a symptom of a larger problem. The Fed shouldn't step in to fix the sewers, they should step in to assist in relocating the residents somewhere else and let the ghost town sink into the fetrid swamp.