Bond vote will have consequences

Dear Editor,

Voters of McCook are being asked to approve a new pool and sports complex.

We are being told to support the youth and businesses by voting for them. Youth are high on my priority list, but we have to pause and think about some of the consequences if this passes.

McCook will be putting all of its eggs in one basket for the next 20 years. Any need, urgent or otherwise, will have to be delayed beyond 20 years if we commit the half-percent sales tax to these projects.

In my opinion, McCook is not maintaining its current obligations as it is. I have watched our first-rate airport slowly fall into a second-rate one during the last two decades. McCook needs a convention center. Many of our streets need repair.

We have been told that the wastewater treatment plant is in need of a complete rebuild. The postcard that was just sent out says the total cost will be one-half of one percent sales tax with no mention of the actual cost.

I have read that the pool/sports project spending amounts to nearly $21 million which is almost $7,800 per McCook resident even though it will be paid for with donations in addition to sales tax on purchases residents of our three-state area make.

The vast majority of them will get no benefit from these local projects. It is said that the maintenance costs of the sports complex will be shared by the City, Schools and College. This will result in a property tax increase since all of these are supported by those taxes.

A pool is a youth’s right of passage and it should have been replaced long ago if the Council had acted responsibly. Combining these two projects at the same time makes it impossible to choose. I am leaning towards voting for these proposals, but let’s do it with the understanding that there are some negative issues that will be a result. McCook needs to be responsible for investing in its future by maintaining what we already have.

We all want a better future for our youth, families and businesses. A lower cost of living would be very beneficial to all three.

A McCook Native,

Mike Nielsen,

McCook, Neb.