Special meeting offers opportunity for learning, input

We don't know what else you may have going on Monday evening, but we urge as many local residents as possible to take advantage of a chance to make an informed decision on the need for a new public safety center, jail or other facilities.

A special meeting of the McCook City Council is set for 6 p.m. Monday in the Public Safety Center Fire Training Room, West Fifth and B, beginning with a tour of the facility, followed by a council discussion session and later an opportunity for public comment.

Judging by the list of topics, it will be a wide-ranging, no-hold-barred discussion.

* Could a joint facility meet city and county needs and would the city wish to partner on such a project?

* How much and what type of space do the fire and police departments need?

* Could the current emergency operations center be remodeled effectively and economically? How about the National Guard Armory or old West Ward school building?

* What would a new police and city administration building cost, and how well would it work?

* How could the cost of a new facility be reduced?

* What would the annual operating budget be and how could the facility be funded? (Ideas include a sales tax, general obligation bond and building in phases.)

* How do the costs of doing the projects now compare with the costs of putting them off?

* Discussion of past bond failures.

* Discussion of the fate of West Ward school building.

And discussion won't be limited to those topics.

Our congratulations to city officials for opening up discussions to public debate and being willing to listen.

We'll be there and we'll provide full coverage of the discussion in Tuesday's edition of the Gazette.

But there's nothing like seeing the bricks-and-mortar involved and hearing the discussion first hand. We urge anyone with concerns about the city's future to take part, and express their concerns at the appropriate time.

We need to remember, however, that it will primarily be a council discussion, and we hope attendees will bring their best manners, showing council members respect and giving them the space to freely discuss the options.

The same goes for continuing discussions as we work toward a decision, whether on radio call-in shows, online feedback, on this page or in the local coffee shops.

Law enforcement, fire and ambulance crews and city officials need the tools to do their job effectively, and that includes the buildings to work in. What form those will take is the question to be answered.

Let's do our best to disagree without being disagreeable while we come up with solutions.

Our community will be the better for it.