development when that development is obliged to pay only their proportionate share of
capital contributions for infrastructure. He said this is a half-cent sales tax, with a twenty
year sunset, creating transportation and a sales tax trust fund, and sharing the
proceeds with our city partners. He said he is not asking to raise taxes he is asking to
put this on the ballot and let the people decide.
Joe LaCascia, Mayor, City of Polk City, said Polk County is the fifth fastest growing
county in the nation. He said roads have been the biggest problem he has faced. He
said what he likes about the sales tax is that they have a lot of people come to the
county and spend money and contribute to the sales tax. He asked if not this half-cent
sales tax then what plan do you have. He welcomed Chair Braswell as the Chair.
Commissioner Combee said we got the name of Imperial Polk County because of the
road program in the 1920's adopted by the Board. He said they built the most roads
and it was paid with bond financing. He said we are reaching into the pockets of people
in Polk County and they are not going to drive on these roads. He said it is a bad idea.
He said we should look at bond financing. He said we are asking people to pay more
taxes when you have inflation at 19%.
Tom Fellows, City of Davenport, said he would have said they were crazy if they told
him what growth they would see. He said a lot of growth has come from unincorporated
Davenport. He said we need relief from traffic. He said the funding we have for the
roads cannot keep up with the growth. He said a half-cent sales tax is a way to help
with the funding.
Deena Drumgo, City of Lake Wales, Assistant City Manager, said they are in support of
a half-cent sales tax. She said the city manager has sent a letter of support.
Bill Mutz, City of Lakeland, Mayor, said traffic is the number one complaint. He said
cities are universally in support of a referendum to have their voices heard. He said this
is an extremely important time to allow citizens to tell them what to do. He said he
cannot imagine a more appropriate opportunity.
Trish Pfeiffer, City of Bartow, Commissioner, said traffic is the number one complaint.
She said we are 100 years from the 20's and a lot has changed since then. She said
835,000 is not the end game and it is going to go beyond that. She said the half-cents
sales tax will be a mechanism to continue to plan transportation. She said it is not just
building new roads, it is resurfacing roads. She said for 50 cents on a $100 we can
make our county more walkable for pedestrians and bicyclist. She discussed the need
for sidewalks and she discussed people being killed. She said it is more than just
roads. She said there were 82,000 crashes from 2017- 2021. She said every week two
people die in crashes while another seven people suffer serious injuries. She
discussed the cost of property damages. She said the people have the opportunity to
change this.
Roy Tyler said he is not here to advocate for or against this. He said he is here to
request the county to allow him to make a choice. He said he would like input for this
by his vote. He said if they put this on the ballot then they are allowing him to speak for
himself.