“Especially when much of the city’s present predicament can be traced to its addiction to fees associated with uncontrolled growth; the height of which was during the Sub-Prime expansion.”
Uncontrolled growth, a product of the 70s when we put a moratoreum on natural gas to stop building permits because the city couldn’t provide services due to the growth. Especially Police, Fire, and utilities.
>>stop building permits
A year or so I came across a document that described a huge shortfall that was to be incurred as the result of the evaporation of a large water connection fee ($10,000+ IIRC) that was tacked on to each new C.S. house's building permit.
IIRC, the document's source was the folks in charge of water - and it discussed probable resultant water rate increases... because the housing boom went poof.
Sound familiar?