as it is interesting for places in economic decline.
https://www.governing.com/topics/finance/gov-land-tax.html
The Market-Frankford rail line curves past an empty lot in Millbourne, Pa., a piece of land that marks both the rise and fall of the small borough just west of Philadelphia.
A Sears store once stood on the lot. Taxes collected from the store’s real estate enriched the treasury of the borough for more than 60 years. The store’s tax payments were the single largest source of revenue for Millbourne, enough for its 1,200 residents to have their own full-time police force. But in 1989, Sears decamped from Millbourne, moving one town over to the much larger and more affluent Upper Darby.
Like most municipalities, Millbourne relied heavily on property taxes. The city taxed land and the buildings on top of the land at the same rate, which is typical for cities across the country. And the Sears store was the largest structure in town on the largest parcel—17 acres. “For many years,” says Millbourne Mayor Tom Kramer, “that area of land was the meat and potatoes of the borough.” But when Sears closed and the building was demolished, Millbourne’s property tax revenue all but evaporated.
https://www.governing.com/topics/finance/gov-land-tax.html
The Market-Frankford rail line curves past an empty lot in Millbourne, Pa., a piece of land that marks both the rise and fall of the small borough just west of Philadelphia.
A Sears store once stood on the lot. Taxes collected from the store’s real estate enriched the treasury of the borough for more than 60 years. The store’s tax payments were the single largest source of revenue for Millbourne, enough for its 1,200 residents to have their own full-time police force. But in 1989, Sears decamped from Millbourne, moving one town over to the much larger and more affluent Upper Darby.
Like most municipalities, Millbourne relied heavily on property taxes. The city taxed land and the buildings on top of the land at the same rate, which is typical for cities across the country. And the Sears store was the largest structure in town on the largest parcel—17 acres. “For many years,” says Millbourne Mayor Tom Kramer, “that area of land was the meat and potatoes of the borough.” But when Sears closed and the building was demolished, Millbourne’s property tax revenue all but evaporated.
