Debate is underway about a Little Rock sales tax proposal to raise a half-billion-dollars over eight years for operating and capital needs. Only a demented Tea Partyer could look around the city and not see a need for a great number of the priorities listed by city officials to be financed by new taxes.

But only those without memories should vote on this issue without mulling the poor city leadership that brought us to this pass — a short-sighted growth policy that didn’t provide the means to pay for the growth as it occurred.

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Jim Lynch, a former city planner, academic and long-time participant in such debates, sent me a note over the weekend recounting the fight to impose growth impact fees to avoid whopper tax packages for fire stations, parks and more required for growth areas. An edited version follows. It’s worth a read.

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