Mountlake Terrace Residents,
How many of you signed your name to a 30-year mortgage for your house without doing a walk through or at least seeing the plans/design of what you were buying. That is what the City of Mountlake Terrace is asking you to do on the April 23rd ballot. They want you to vote “Yes” for a New Civic Center. They have not only asked you once, not twice but will be asking you again for a 3rd time to approve Prop. 1 without providing any plans/designs of what we are buying.
I am asking you to think long and hard. Without making changes after the August failed attempt to get this passed they are using scare tactics of raising property taxes, diminished police enforcement, and cutting city services.
Councilwoman Wright is quoted as saying, ” I think the citizens of this city really don’t have anything to complain about when you come right down to it because they can always move to another city that has more problems. I think that I like living here. And we’re on the verge of getting a city that is the envy of the whole state, and I really, really want to be alive to see it happen.” http://mltnews.wpengine.com/councilmembers-put-it-on-the-line-for-voters-civic-center-needed/
I am asking, why any of us that she represents in this city would have to move just because we don’t agree with her.
Vote “NO” on Prop. 1 and let’s send the Mountlake Terrace City Council a message that we cannot be bullied into building something we cannot afford right now!
Margaret Loiseau
I totally disagree with your comments, Margaret. This is an incredibly well planned, fiscally responsible and progressive plan for our city. I, along with a majority of voters in the last election, fully support the Civic Center bond issue. I applaud our City Manager and Council for steering us in this direction, and for patiently and responsibly adjusting the plan to fit the needs and finances of this community.
I am on the MLT YES for PROGRESS volunteer committee, and I plan to devote my free time for the next three months to talking with neighbors, friends and businesses about how the Civic Center, police department and library upgrades, and the multi purpose community center are essential to the revitalization of our community. The last election vote was a hearty endorsement of the civic center plan. We will find every one of those YES voters and energize and excite them again to approve the bond issue and begin the process of making Mountlake Terrace a vibrant and economically diverse and thriving business community.
Proposition 1 has my vote! MLT can’t afford to not have this well planned Civic Center.
Margaret,
Have you checked out http://www.cityofmlt.com/civicCenter/ ? There is a ton of information on the Civic Center project, with email links if you have questions.
I was in the Citizen’s Academy last year and they showed us plans, so the city definitely isn’t hiding anything. They even showed us how they have scaled back from the original plans, due to finances. If you want to see the design, have you visited the current City Hall? I’m not sure where they would have such things, but that seems like a good start.
My belief is that taxes are going to *have* to go up because we either have to keep paying rent where the City Hall currently is, or we build a new building and upgrade the library and police station (which both *really* need it!). If we don’t agree to tax increases, they’re going to have to pay rent regardless and city services will need to be cut. That’s not a “message” – that’s a fact.
I don’t understand why Councilwoman Wright would say she is quoted as saying, but without knowing the rest of what she was talking about, I can’t make an opinion.
Jennifer
Jennifer, those plans you are talking about are from the original design and are no longer being used. What we need is a “City Hall”, That is what we should build and then we wouldn’t have to pay rent. Ask the City Manager if there are plans so you can see what they are building and you will get told they don’t have any!
How many of you lived in an Apartment for years – spending hundreds (and thousands) of dollars to some unknown entity with nothing to show for it? The city of MLT cannot continue to pay rent to some out-of-state company with nothing to show for it. This city needs to make a firm investment in its future, not continue to pay month after month, year after year, our taxpayer dollars and have nothing when all is said and done.
I’ve lived in this city for 36 years. I have seen this city make good decisions in the past and trust that they will make good decisions in the future. Every opportunity is a leap of faith. Every decision is wrought with peril. Every journey can lead to success or failure. I would rather this city invest in itself than in someone else.
Hi Margaret! Proud of
your passion and miss you gal!
However, I could not disagree with you more. Mountlake Terrace is a great city and I love
living here. We have an award winning Parks and Recreation department, beautiful
lakes and trails and more, but what we don’t have is a dedicated city
center. I strongly believe that a city
office (i.e. the civic center) should be in the heart of town and accessible to
all. The city is currently spending
$500,000 a year to rent space in a wholly inaccessible office block by
I-5. It won’t be long before the city
runs out of money to even rent that space and where do you think they will find
the money to continue? If they don’t cut services (that’s not scare tactics it’s
just a fact sadly) then property taxes will go up regardless and to have our city
renting space over owning its own building doesn’t make financial sense in the
long term.
After Premera Blue Cross, the City of Mountlake Terrace is
one of the city’s largest employers. Can
we afford Proposition 1 in this current economic climate? Well, for many that answer is a resounding
no, but when will the RIGHT time be? We
need a city center eventually, however you spin it, plus the bond would allow much
needed renovation of our Library and police headquarters, among other community
services the city offers. I believe that
the 30 year bond will be financed with an increase in our property taxes of
about $3.75 a month (the price of ONE Starbucks coffee for most people!) rising
to about $13.00 a month at the start of 2015 (Source: MLT News.) Margaret,
no one likes an increase in their property taxes, particularly when we have
seen our house prices fall so dramatically but even financing the bond, MLT
residents will still be paying lower property taxes than many of the towns
bordering our city.
Carrie LaMarr
Hi Margaret! Proud of
your passion and miss you gal!
However, I could not disagree with you more. Mountlake Terrace is a great city and I love
living here. We have an award winning Parks and Recreation department, beautiful
lakes and trails and more, but what we don’t have is a dedicated city
center. I strongly believe that a city
office (i.e. the civic center) should be in the heart of a town and accessible to
all. The city is currently spending
$500,000 a year to rent space in a wholly inaccessible office block by
I-5. It won’t be long before the city
runs out of money to even rent that space and where do you think they will find
the money to continue? If they don’t cut services (that’s not scare tactics it’s
just a fact sadly) then property taxes will go up regardless and to have our city
renting space over owning its own building doesn’t make financial sense in the
long term.
After Premera Blue Cross, the City of Mountlake Terrace is
one of the city’s largest employers. Can
we afford Proposition 1 in this current economic climate? Well, for many that answer is a resounding
no, but when will the RIGHT time be? We
need a city center eventually, however you spin it, plus the bond would allow much
needed renovation of our library and police headquarters, among other community
services the city offers. I believe that
the 30 year bond will be financed with an increase in our property taxes of
about $3.75 a month (the price of ONE Starbucks coffee for most people!) rising
to about $13.00 a month at the start of 2015 (Source: MLT News.) Margaret,
no one likes an increase in their property taxes, particularly when we have
seen our house prices fall so dramatically but even financing the bond, MLT
residents will still be paying lower property taxes than many of the towns
bordering our city.
Carrie LaMarr
this trivializes it entirely, but we can’t afford NOT to. I will be voting YES.
I also disagree with you. Yes lets raise property taxes to pay for leasing another space or raise taxes to build our own civic center on our own property. My husband and I are both retired and on a fixed income yet we will vote yes on this much need civic center and gladly pay our part. This is for the future
of our city and our grandkids. The decision is up to you. Lets pass this thing and get on with moving forward.
What we need is a “City Hall” not a “Grandiose Complex”!