MARIETTA - Residents in the city of Marietta will be asked to vote Nov. 3 on a $25 million bond to improve existing city parks and possibly purchase land for new parks.

After a last minute change to drop the bond amount from $30 million to $25 million, the City Council voted 4-3 with Philip Goldstein, Annette Lewis and the Rev. Anthony Coleman opposed to place the referendum on the Nov. 3 ballot. Goldstein and Coleman said, in the current recession, now is the wrong time to be asking voters to approve a tax increase, while Lewis said she is "ashamed" of the council for not being able to figure out specifics as to where the $25 million would be spent.

Current information on how much of a tax increase residents would face if the bond is approved was not available as of press time because of the last-minute change in the bond amount; however, when the bond was $30 million, city staff said a person would pay an additional $58.92 per year in property taxes on a $200,000 home. The bond would be paid off over 20 years.

Goldstein said high unemployment, record foreclosures and the recession "does not equal the right time to ask for a tax increase."

He said people younger than 62 years old will be paying $223.25 more on their '09 tax bills year because of the loss of state tax relief grants. Add in the $58.92 (when the parks bond was $30 million) for a $200,000 home, and an additional estimated $26 for operational and maintenance costs, and a Marietta resident will pay roughly $308 more in property taxes per year on a $200,000 house.

And Goldstein said the situation could get even worse next year with possibly more tax increases.

Yet Mayor Bill Dunaway said Goldstein has ulterior motives for not wanting a parks bond.

"No doubt you and your family own more taxable property (in the city) than anyone. You and your family don't want to pay more taxes. Just say that."

Goldstein called the remarks an "attack on character," which should not be part of the discussion. He said each council member is passionate in his or her beliefs, and "it is a shame to attack character."

Lewis said she was against the bond because it did not include specifics on where the money would be spent.

"We just have a dollar amount," she said. "...For what? We don't know. When? We don't know. Just trust us."

Councilwoman Holly Walquist, who along with the mayor spearheaded the parks bond, said the city is working to get more specific with the plan before it goes before voters.

Earlier proposals for the $30 million broke down into: $16.2 million for improving existing parks and facilities; $6 million for land acquisition; $2.6 million for the development of new parks, trails and greenspace; and $5.2 million for contingency, design, planning and administration.

When asked during a break where the $5 million would be reduced, Walquist said, "We might just take land acquisition out." However, she said that is just her opinion from hearing comments from other officials.

Proponents of the bond believe the voters should be given the opportunity to decide if they want it.

Councilman Van Pearlberg said, "We are here to make decisions and let the voters decide."

Regarding Goldstein's concern that this is not the time to be asking voters to approve a tax increase, Walquist said, while times are tough economically now, they will not be that way throughout the 20 year bond.

Also Wednesday, the City Council voted:

n unanimously to rezone property around Douceur de France, the quaint French cafe at the corner of Glover Street and Atlanta Road, from Light Industrial to Community Retail Restaurant. The rezoning allows the restaurant, which is owned by Luc Beaudet, to add seating for 20 more people and expand its parking lot by 10 spaces. The cafe currently has seating for 30 people and has 20 parking spaces. Beaudet said the expansion is needed to keep his business thriving.

n unanimously to take some arrestees to Smyrna's jail rather than the Cobb County Jail. Police Chief Dan Flynn, who requested the action, says the change could mean more time on the street for his officers. Arrestees are more likely to be sent to the hospital after taken to the Cobb jail, Flynn says. During which time, the arresting officer has to sit with the arrestee.