https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/20/opinion-broadway-upzoning-parking-chicago/
“If the city becomes more dense, where will people put their car?!!” he asks.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/20/opinion-broadway-upzoning-parking-chicago/
“If the city becomes more dense, where will people put their car?!!” he asks.
The way public infrastructure expansion works isn’t a ponzi scheme.
We typically require a maintenance contract from the developer for the first few years and a special tax for the owners of the developed land that lasts between 10 and 30 years, depending on the specifics of the agreement. That tax is put into escrow, and by the time the infrastructure needs to be maintained, there’s enough money in the fund to maintain that portion of the infrastructure off of interest.
The mistake many cities make is putting that revenue into the general fund. But if you put it into dedicated funds, it can’t be diverted to other city expenses and used by the next Council to cut property taxes while leaving future maintenance unfunded.
That sounds less like “the way public infrastructure expansion works isn’t a ponzi scheme,” and more “my city is the exception to the rule that does it right.”