Tonight when I peeled my “I Voted” sticker from my shirt front I reflected today marks the first time I have ever voted “no” on a bond issue during the 17 years I have lived in Juneau. I voted no because after taking out my pencil and adding and subtracting I could not find anywhere in my budget to squeeze any more money out for our city, I wanted to, but I just couldn’t balance the numbers.
The ladies and gentlemen who work the property tax division for CBJ can attest how in the past I have shown up to pay property tax with a smile on my face, thankful for our brave fire fighters, our brave officers who protect us, the incredible workers who get up at ungodly hours to clear our streets so we can get to work, and truth be told I enjoy the flowers in the meridian. It always comes down to money, or lack of there of. So no one mistakes me for anyone wealthy, or important, most of the time I was paying property tax for a slightly less than palatial mobile home in Sprucewood.
Jurgis Rudkins chanted over and over to himself “I will work harder,” and for my entire life I have used his ideology as a baseline for my own existence, and for the contributions I am able to make for others.
Working harder no longer seems to be the reasonable answer. More money seems to feed hyperinflation. I always scorned the “just say no” program as total failure, but tonight joined the ranks.
Linda Orr
Licensed Realtor
Douglas
Comments (5)
Add commentHang in there, Linda
Remember, Jurgis went from 'working harder' to being a Socialist. You're talking about shifting to the other end of the spectrum.
I do agree with you. I would like to hear from the Assembly how they justified bundling so many 'wants' with 'needs'.
We need to take care of Centennial Hall. We need an Adolescent Mental Health Unit. We need to care for our harbors. But we want a Library. We want an ORV park. We want trail improvements and a training center at Eaglecrest.
By larding up the 'needs' with a bunch of 'wants', the Assembly risked exactly what happened - they forced the taxpayers to cook the goose laying the golden eggs.
The 'wants' were all nice things, and our community is better because we made those investments. But we shouldn't have to do them with a gun held to our heads. The first time I became aware of this bundling was with the Treadwell skating rink, when it was bundled in with a critical hospital upgrade. Who's going to vote against the hospital?
So what happens if the bundling no longer happens? Will the taxpayers willingly invest in any of the 'wants'? For nearly all of the 'wants', the users are heavily outweighed by the non-users. Would ANYTHING ever be built?
I voted NO for the first time
I voted NO for the first time too, Linda. The tide is shifting....
Life goes on
The bond issue failed. If the citizens of Juneau and CBJ Assembly think it is important enough it will return. A question - why does the CBJ need a teenage mental health clinic? Where does Juneau Youth Services and/or SAGA or the Teen Health Clinics, or Bartlett fit in here? I thought Bartlett had a good mental health clinic for youth in particular. The School District downsized its nursing services in the school district didn't it? Can someone please fill in the blanks here?
@hellojuneau
As far as JYS, they do a lot of good; but I am not so sure that they deal with the full spectrum of disorders in the DSM-V. That was actually one part of the bundle that I did not oppose, because if left unchecked those youths that could find help now will be out on the streets yelling at us and the tourists while we are trying to go about our business downtown. Maybe Bartlett has a mental health, but not one specific to children; who do have special needs relative to adults.
I did not understand adding more debt to the Eaglecrest by building more structures, nor the need for a library that would "save us money" only after a short 68.6 years; which we would then tear it down and build a new library. I love going to the library, but I have never seen that many people there.
Kudos to Linda
Yep, some of us having been saying it for years, and fortunately more people are beginning to see the light. Run the community like a prudent individual runs their household. Yes there are many things that we all like to have but if funds are lacking the only option is to go without. Strongly advocate taking care of the things that exist now in lieu of building nice new shiny things that only add to our financial woes.