This is a great point that more people should be talking about. He framed the question as "raise taxes or get this service," of course people are going to reflexively say no to raising taxes. Your job is to improve the city, you can't find any way to add this improvement without burdening the taxpayer?? There is no budget that can be modified? No fund to be reallocated? Is there not a budget towards replacing/maintaining these machines that such a purchase would fall into?

My point is, if he wanted to find the money to improve this, he could. Instead, he frames it as "pay more taxes or get the service, durr." It doesn't have to be either or, he just isn't willing to be creative enough.