4 ms·

> As a town we are essentially a fixed plot of land cultivating a crop of buildings which we tax to fund our corporation This is a very interesting point of vi

> As a town we are essentially a fixed plot of land cultivating a crop of buildings which we tax to fund our corporation This is a very interesting point of view that I have not seen anywhere else. However it omits side-effects that buildings have on citizens other than taxes, e.g. hospitals improve health, universities improve human capital of citizens, factories create network effects with respect to suppliers and retailers, etc. A healthier and more educated workforce will be more productive and a healthier business network will add more value generating more sales taxes and increasing property value.

TulliusCicero 5y ago
The analogy has limits, but it's a useful framing when you're dealing with finances like this.
asimpletune 5y ago
Yeah I was just thinking about that. Basically, using business terms, those things you mentioned should be thought of as liabilities. Maybe it's not the perfect analogy, but if everything can somewhat be captured or at least get within the right order of magnitude, I think it could maybe help guide decisions towards creating the optimal density.
imtringued 5y ago
You can charge for the presence of the hospital through a land value tax.
treis 5y ago
It's a good strategy when you're playing SimCity but the real world doesn't work that way. The major costs of government, as the article's pie chart clearly shows, are services to people. And in the real world dense cities spend more on services per person than rural areas. It's just the fundamental misconception that underlies all these sorts of articles. Land doesn't pay taxes and land doesn't really consume resources. People do.
- ghaff 5y ago
  And it's usually even simpler than that. Most property taxes go to education, which is usually a higher cost per student in cities (for often worse outcomes). And a decent chunk of the balance is police and fire.

TulliusCicero 5y ago

The analogy has limits, but it's a useful framing when you're dealing with finances like this.

asimpletune 5y ago

Yeah I was just thinking about that. Basically, using business terms, those things you mentioned should be thought of as liabilities. Maybe it's not the perfect analogy, but if everything can somewhat be captured or at least get within the right order of magnitude, I think it could maybe help guide decisions towards creating the optimal density.

imtringued 5y ago

You can charge for the presence of the hospital through a land value tax.

treis 5y ago

It's a good strategy when you're playing SimCity but the real world doesn't work that way. The major costs of government, as the article's pie chart clearly shows, are services to people. And in the real world dense cities spend more on services per person than rural areas. It's just the fundamental misconception that underlies all these sorts of articles. Land doesn't pay taxes and land doesn't really consume resources. People do.

ghaff 5y ago
And it's usually even simpler than that. Most property taxes go to education, which is usually a higher cost per student in cities (for often worse outcomes). And a decent chunk of the balance is police and fire.