Good Evening Chairman and Commissioners, I have some good news for one of our county’s scenic historic roads and then I would like to opine on the bad news for our county’s treasured rural roads. 

This week and early next week the Old Town Historic Daffodil Project with be planting 7000 historic daffodil bulbs along the frontage of Old Town on both sides of the Old Natchez Trace. The American Daffodil Society has been very supportive of this project and some of its members from numerous states have contributed bulbs to it. 

There is an article in the September Daffodil Journal regarding this project and the National Convention of the American Daffodil Society will be held April 5-8 at the Franklin Marriott in Cool Springs. While the best of the blooming may be done by then, daffodil connoisseurs will enjoy seeing the green foliage as they travel along Williamson County’s beloved Old Natchez Trace. 

Tonight you are being asked to accept the county’s Comprehensive Traffic Study and endorse its funding recommendations since there is no dedicated source of revenue in the county to fund the magnitude of roadway improvements that are said to be needed in this report. These recommendations are: a 9 cent property tax increase. 

A 90 dollar per dwelling county wide Transportation Utility Fee. An unincorporated property tax increase of 16 cents combined with a one- time road impact fee of 3300 dollars for each new dwelling…..and an Unincorporated County Transportation Utility Fee of 745 dollars on an annual basis. This last funding recommendation would require a change in state law as it is NOT currently legal. Residential Growth DOES NOT PAY FOR ITSELF….TAXPAYERS PAY FOR IT AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN while developers reap the profits. We are losing our valuable treasured scenic historic resources and quality of life for quantity of growth. If residential growth paid for itself we should be receiving reductions in property and sales taxes. I urge you to start downzoning in the unincorporated county not upping citizens’ taxes and fees. Enough is enough.