HomeMy WebLinkAbout112023 email Aquatic Center Proposal (0002)ALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
Thank you for taking the time to read my few remarks regarding the proposal to build the new Aquatic Center.
You may have noticed the rate of inflation (especially for groceries!), the high price of fuels, electricity, waste management fees and the lessening of City services (no longer maintaining
storm drains along the sides of the roads). You know that many of your constituents are on fixed incomes, and any bumps in taxes whether they be sales or property are incredibly difficult
for them. You may have noticed that property valuations have risen astronomically in the past few years...my own home seems to have become worth 46% more than it was just a few years
ago. It is becoming difficult to pay those taxes...I no longer pay them in one lump sum, instead paying twice a year. I am saying please do not burden your people who elected you
with yet more tax increases.
I also object strongly to the formation of a new taxing district with the authority to raise property taxes even higher. I believe funds the appointed (not elected) members of such a
board impose may not even be dedicated to this single project of an aquatic center.
If the old pool cannot be remodeled, you must consider less expensive alternatives to the luxurious facility being discussed.
The current estimate for this project is about $37 million. Add in the interest in borrowing the $20 million the Aquatic Center president says will be needed and you are looking at
an incredible amount of tax money used to pay the interest! $37 million is not the correct cost at all.
On top of that, the City of Port Townsend pledges to bolster operating expenses with an annual $400,000! It is just too much, when we are not keeping up with our aging infrastructure
of roads and water lines.
I also object to the YMCA being the operator of the facility. They are too quick to ban people for life from their current facility.
I know you are County Commissioners, not Port Townsend Council members. Perhaps the suffering of those of us in the City do not matter to you, however we are also County residents as
well. If you want votes from folks out in the County, perhaps you could locate a more moderate aquatic center in Hadlock, now that the sewer is going in, and there is county land available.
I just cannot see constituents in Brinnon, Forks, Quilcene etc. regularly using the facility especially if it is in the City, and also having to pay the proposed $900 annual membership
fee.
Respectfully,
Carol J Crosby