Monday, October 2, 2023
The tail sure does wag the dog in Port Townsend.
The small, loud group insisting we build them a new pool seems unfazed by the newest guesstimate of $37 million to $52 million, a titanic …
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The tail sure does wag the dog in Port Townsend.
The small, loud group insisting we build them a new pool seems unfazed by the newest guesstimate of $37 million to $52 million, a titanic expenditure for a town of 10,000.
Borrowing tens of millions for something used by so few of us is harder to justify than a golf course for a handful of nostalgic golfers.
Meanwhile, the public works director said our sewer lines are so deteriorated further surveying could damage them. Yes, sewers come from a different fund than pool debt would, but don’t be fooled, Pollyanna. If you live in this increasingly unaffordable city, it’s all coming from the same wallet — yours.
But never mind luxuries like a pool for the YMCA or essential infrastructure like sewers and streets. We have a pricey, beachfront view of sea level rise. It’s irresponsible to borrow millions for a pool (plus operating losses) until we’ve got a plan for keeping the City of Dreams from drowning in saltwater as well as debt.
And instead of online polls that fail to ask if we support the pool or not, let’s have a town meeting to foster consensus on needs versus wants.
Barney Burke
PORT TOWNSEND
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TomT
The $42 million Salish Cost school project increased my property tax bill by 9%.
Bond interest rates are much higher now, so a $52 million pool could increase your property taxes by a lot more than that.
Behind the scenes, the people who want their pool no matter the cost are scheming to expand the area that would be taxed to pay for this boondoggle to residents of the county, outside of city limits. That's the textbook case of "taxation without representation", one of the primary grievances that led to the American Revolution.
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