We can all relate to the weak economy and how it impacts everyone’s finances. Here’s a little exercise for your consideration when evaluating the proposed sale of the Trenton Water Works Outside Delivery Infrastructure.

You are approached by a man in an nice suit. He offers you two options:

You will be given $10,000 today, and starting next year you will receive $1000 a year for the next twenty years.

You will be given $4000 today, and starting next year you'll receive $4000 a year for the next twenty years.

For some the immediate offer of $10,000 would be overwhelming and they'd choose Option 1 without batting an eye. That's a short term gain, but a long term loss.

For the majority, a little simple math would prove to them that option two is by far the best and that they'll go with that.

Option 1: - $10,000 + $20,000 ($1,000 X 20 Years) = $30,000

Option 2: - $   4000 + $80,000 ($4,000 X 20 Years) = $84,000

Now take that analogy and plug in real numbers to see what the city of Trenton will be losing if the sale goes through.

Receive $75M today, and starting next year you'll receive $10M a year for the next twenty years.

Receive $40M today, and continuing receiving $40M a year for the next 20 years.

Net revenue:

Option 1: $75M + $200M ($10M X 20 Years) = $275M

Option 2: $40M + $800M ($40M X 20 Years) = $840M

Now, which would you choose?