The Grafton Township Supervisor race heated up today with the arrival of a post card from John Rossi and his slate of incumbent trustees.
Incumbent Rossi is running against challenger Linda Moore.
You can see the side with the text here (click to enlarge).
I’m pretty amazed that he emphasizes that no referendum was held. Of course, he doesn’t tell constituents that he and township trustees put them in debt for $3.5 million without allowing them to vote for or against the proposal at the polls.
And, Rossi doesn’t reveal that there would have been tax decreases had the extra $3.5 million (plus interest) tax burden not been foisted on homeowners and businesses.
Instead he brags in boldface type,
or tax increases“
Talk about putting lipstick on a pig.
So, instead of a tax decrease, property owners will have to pay off a new tax burden caused by borrowed $3.5 million to build a new township hall.
As to the “no tax referendums” claim, a Linda Moore mailing said,
Rossi also includes the picture of an unnamed couple who have apparently given a contribution to the Grafton Township Food Pantry, new space for which will be extracted from township taxpayers without their having given approval at the ballot box. Rossi is president of the private not-for-profit food pantry.
As this article points out, the Crystal Lake Food Pantry was bought and remodeled (with three years’ utility cost in the bank) for $500,000. The money came from voluntary contributions, not coerced tax payments mandated by a township board.
Rossi states he is willing to “listen to constituents.”
He just won’t let them vote in a referendum whether they should be put in debt.
At least he is paying for this campaign mailing out of campaign funds, instead of tax dollars, the use of which close to the election is banned for state legislative candidates, but not for township officials.
At the bottom of his campaign mailer is this:
“Founder of the Grafton Township Republican Central Committee”
Unsaid is that he supported a Democrat for county board last fall. She beat a Republican.