Communities need a good place to meet

No matter how large or small, America's towns and cities need gathering places for community celebrations and special events. In recognition of that fact, many places have already created community centers, including, in recent years, an ABC lineup of area towns: Arapahoe, Benkelman and Cambridge.

Now, another community in Southwest Nebraska is near a decision on the community center issue. That town is Curtis, where citizens will be voting in just over two weeks -- on Tuesday, July 13 -- about whether to authorize a one-cent sales tax to finance a new, $1.4 million center.

The land for the center has already been purchased. It sits on the western edge of the Arrowhead Meadows Golf Course on property which formerly served as a sale barn. The City of Curtis bought the land for $36,277, and has spent an additional $56,826, to hire an architect, JEO Consulting, to design the building.

The one-cent sales tax to finance the center is one of two issues on the ballot. The other is a half-cent sales tax to finance economic development in the Curtis area.

As Curtis Hi-Line Publisher Bob Willis sees it, Curtis is like small to medium-sized towns all across the Great Plains. "We're at a crossroads," he said. "We have to decide whether we are going to stay the same or move forward."

The community center campaign had its roots four years ago during the Curtis "Hometown Christmas" celebration. On a cold winter night, a long line of people was waiting to get inside the Vineyard Christian Fellowship church. It was then -- as they shivered -- that the realization struck: "We need a larger place for community events."

In the years since, the campaign has gained steam, with Mayor Kevin Brown and council members Doug Schultz, Brad Welch, George Wetzel and Steve Krull agreeing, in the end, to submit the issue to the voters.

The one-cent city sales tax is expected to generate $60,000 a year. That money would be used to retire the bonds, while a $50,000 annual contribution from Curtis Power & Light would cover operating costs.

A tough decision, with the good the center will do balanced against the cost. What will the people of Curtis decide? With 528 registered voters and an average turnout percentage of just 35 percent, as few as 100 votes -- one way or the other -- could decide the issue. That places a heavy responsibility on Curtis voters. It will be particularly interesting to see how they respond.