Today's Feature

Approved Property Tax Rates.

The Carthage City Council met Tuesday evening in a regular session and approved an ordinance levying City property taxes for 2008. The first reading for this ordinance was held in a special session in order to allow for the adoption of the ordinance within the mandated timeline.

The property tax rates are proposed at .7604 per $100 assessed valuation for this year. Last year’s rate was .7525 per $100 assessed valuation.

Council also approved ordinances banning peddling, or selling items from parked vehicles within City parks, and an ordinance removing Hazel Avenue as a truck route.

Citizen participant Gordon Riley spoke to the Council concerning an ordinance in its first reading. Riley said that he opposed an ordinance rezoning property at 1226 East 13th Street to allow a duplex, citing that it would be inappropriate because the rest of the homes in the area are single family dwellings. The Planning, Zoning and Historic Preservation commission has recommended to Council that the request be denied. The item will return for a vote at the next regular Council meeting.

Mornin'

I can remember the conversation with my older brother, prob’ly twelve or thirteen at the time. I don’t know what it was about, but he was agreein’ with my folks about somethin’ that I didn’t agree with.

I made some statement abut ‘em gangin’ up on me. Why couldn’t anyone see things the way I did"

He said somethin’ about takin’ a minute to at least consider the possibility that if ever’one was agreein’ but me, maybe , just maybe I was wrong.

Like I said, I don’t ‘member what the topic of conversation was, but mostly likely he was right and I was wrong. It happened on occasion. I doubt that I ever admitted that to him though. I would have never heard the end of it.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Click & Clack Talk Cars

By Tom & Ray Magliozzi

Dear Tom and Ray:

I have noticed that most, if not all, new cars have lower miles-per-gallon estimates for 2008 than they had for 2007. Are the cars less efficient, or are the ratings stricter?--Ray

TOM: The EPA fuel-economy numbers were, in fact, adjusted downward in 2008 in an attempt to get them from "ridiculous" to "plausible."

RAY: Before 2008, everybody knew that the EPA numbers were not real. If the EPA said a car got 20 mpg around town, you’d be lucky to get 15. In fact, the city numbers were probably 30 percent lower, on average, than EPA estimates.

TOM: The only use for EPA numbers was for comparison purposes. If you were buying a 20000 Ford Expedition, you knew it would never really get the 12 mpg around town, but you knew that the same year’s Honda CR-V, EPA estimated at 22 mpg city, was almost twice as good. And that was worth knowing.

RAY: But it was time for an update. The original tests were done under "ideal" conditions, they didn’t reflect how people drive now. The EPA made some changes.

TOM: People drive at higher speeds now than they did during the 55 MPH speed limits of the ‘70’s. Higher speed driving uses more fuel. The EPA added a high-speed component to its tests.

RAY: Almost all cars have air conditioning now, which was not true in the ‘70s. AC used increases fuel consumption. Portion of the new test are done with the AC on.

TOM: The old tests were done at ideal temperatures and didn’t reflect cold weather states. While the numbers are lower, they’re at least real numbers now. Check out www. fueleconomy.gov. for EPA ratings of every car sold in America.