Costs of various goods and services in Elizabethtown

As Elizabethtown Borough Council considers and debates the borough's 2011 budget, here are some costs that many of us incur in Elizabethtown -- and they are things to think about and consider, especially when compared to your property taxes:

• GEARS before and after school daycare (one child for 9 months): $3,120
• Average annual electric bill for a customer with central air conditioning: $2,200
• Price for filling up a 10-gallon gas tank once every other week: $1,144
• Basic digital cable from Comcast: $720
• Purchase one 20-ounce soda per day for a year: $507
• Price of one cup of coffee at Turkey Hill a day for a year: $464
• Elizabethtown's average real estate tax bill: $579
• One Pennsylvania Lottery ticket per day for a year: $365
• Sliver membership to Elizabethtown Fitness Center: $490
• Basic telephone service: $360
• Elizabethtown Borough sewer fee: $252
• Willowood Swim Club membership for three months: $225
• Elizabethtown Borough trash/recycling (one bag per week): $160

Thanks goes to the borough staff for compiling these numbers. It certainly puts things in perspective for me. If you think about it,  the services the borough provides -- such as 24-7 police protection, a code enforcement program, beautiful parks, recreation programming through GEARS, clean and safe roads, snow plowing, emergency management services, street sweeping, street lights, contributions to the Elizabethtown Fire Department and the Elizabethtown Public Library -- make living in this community a value.