Arden,
Delaware
http://www.henrygeorge.org/mikerent.htm The
Arden Land Trust
Upton Sinclair: The Consequences of
Land Speculation are Tenantry and Debt on the Farms, and Slums and Luxury
in the Cities
...I have before me a little book entitled "Enclaves of Economic Rent," by
C. W. Huntington....This book is published by Mr. Fiske Warren, a millionaire
paper manufacturer who lives at Harvard, Massachusetts, and believes in the
Single Tax by way of enclaves....I sought to persuade Mr. Warren that a great
crisis was impending; that the inequality of wealth in our society a thing
continually growing worse, was bound to bring a smash-up long before mankind
had been persuaded to live in enclaves. To this Mr. Warren answered, in substance: "You
may be right; but if this civilization collapses, something else will have
to be put in its place, and it may be useful to men to have a model of a
better community."
...How are these enclaves run? The principle is very simple. The community
owns the land, and fixes the site value year by year, and those who occupy
the land pay the full rental value of the land they occupy. Improvements of
any kind are not taxed; you pay only for the use of what nature and the community
have created. The community takes all this wealth and uses it, first to pay
all the taxes on the land [and buildings -ds] the remaining money being expended
for community purposes, by the democratic vote of all.
What this means in practice you can see from the town of Fairhope, Alabama.
Fairhope began nearly thirty years ago, with three hundred and fifty acres,
and now has nearly four thousand acres. Its land is estimated to be worth a
million dollars. But instead of this wealth being distributed among private
owners, in accordance with the guessing power or each individual, the whole
rental value is the property of the community, and the whole community prospers
by the labors of each one.
What this means in the way of moral values you may judge from one sentence
in the little book: and I will follow the example of the book and quote this
sentence in the same cold and unemotional fashion: "No resident of Fairhope
has been defendant in a criminal case in county court." Perhaps I should
add that there is no place except the county court where anyone could be
a defendant; there has never been a court or jail or anything of that sort
in
Fairhope.
Or take the colony of Arden, Delaware, which is just south of Philadelphia.
I could not say that no resident of Arden has ever been a defendant in
a court — I
myself having been one of eleven men who were arrested by a constable from
the city of Wilmington, and sent to prison for the crime of playing baseball
and tennis on Sunday! It is that kind of humorous story which you read
about Arden, and not the serious efforts which are there being made to solve
a great
and pressing social problem.
In Philadelphia, as in all our great cities, are enormously wealthy families,
living on hereditary incomes derived from crowded slums. Here and there among
these rich men is one who realizes that he has not earned what he is consuming,
and that it has not brought him happiness, and is bringing still less to his
children. Such men are casting about for ways to invest their money without
breeding idleness and parasitism. Some of them might be grateful to learn about
this enclave plan, and to visit the lovely village of Arden, and see what its
people are doing to make possible a peaceful and joyous life, even in this
land of bootleggers and jazz orchestras. ... read the whole article
Fred E. Foldvary — The
Ultimate Tax Reform:
Public Revenue from Land Rent
Followers of Henry George established several model communities. In one of
them, Arden, Delaware, all residential land is owned by a trust. It leases
the land to the residents, who pay rent only on their leaseholds. The trust
itself pays property taxes to the county. Arden has prospered as a community
with fine houses and lively community activities.37
Many private communities implement the single tax on land in effect, collected
as a fee or assessment. A condominium owner, for example, owns his unit and
a share of the “common elements” such as building exteriors, landscaping,
and recreation facilities. The unit owner pays an assessment often calculated
as a “percentage interest,” based on the market value of the
unit relative to other units. In effect, the unit owner is paying rent for
use of
the common elements.38 ... read the whole
document
Dan Sullivan: Are you a Real
Libertarian, or a ROYAL Libertarian?
There are, in fact, proprietary
communities operating on the
single tax model. Arden, Delaware, with a population of 4900, has had
no local taxes since 1900. The Arden Corporation collects a fair
market rent on each land parcel, which is reappraised annually. (They
actually collect only about a fourth of the rent to which they are
entitled.) From that they not only pay for all the municipal
services, but rebate all property taxes levied by the county and
school district.... Read the whole piece
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