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Regular City Council Meeting <br />April 14, 2003 <br />Page 7 <br /> <br />Mr. Plata's water study is attached hereto as Exhibit A to these minutes. <br /> <br />Chip Harper came forward stating that he was representing We-Pack Logistics. <br />He asked the City Council to postpone this decision and study it further. Mr. <br />Harper said the city is fortunate to have some of the finest industry in the <br />world. Mr. Harper said that the City Council is working very diligently and the <br />city has excellent management in place and they have rated the city's <br />management above expectations. Mr. Harper said what they are asking for <br />today is to manage the cost. He said the city needs to study this, but not pass <br />those costs on to industry competing in a global society every year having to <br />reduce their cost. Mr. Harper stated that they were operating very efficiently, <br />but they are suffering here with people trying to take our industry from the city. <br />When the city looks at Sherman, Texas, and looks at the industry that they have <br />lost, we cannot afford, as a community, to lose these industrial customers. His <br />recommendation is to postpone this decision, study it, and ask these engineers <br />to help the city manage this by reducing the cost. Mr. Harper said there was a <br />7% budget increase last year, which was driven by the Fire Department going <br />to get a raise. That did not happen. That was driven by the thought of sales tax <br />dropping. That is not the case; sales tax today is up 6% in this community <br />from a year ago. Those type revenues will offset these costs. He encouraged <br />the city to manage their cost. <br /> <br />Ed Seidle, 1363 Pine Bluff, came forward stating that he felt that Mr. Harper <br />has done a very good job explaining the situation as he sees it, and felt that <br />most people feel the same way. Mr. Seidle said one thing that he did not <br />mention is the increase to $0.80 per hundred in taxes last year, most of the <br />people in the City of Paris had their appraisals raised making the taxes higher <br />than they were. He said that somewhere down the road they have got to stop <br />this spending. Mr. Seidle said people in the private sector have to cut back <br />when they are short of money and the city must do the same. <br /> <br />Councilman John Bell explained that there has always been a great deal of <br />confusion about tax increases and water rate increases. In this city, the Charter <br /> <br /> <br />