Dear Editor, Last night I attended the community conversations
at the Viand Restaurant. It was facilitated by the police chief and
the head of the chamber of commerce. We had a small but diverse
group of people from old timers to a group of young women from a
civics class in Live Oak. We were immigrants and native
Californians.
Dear Editor,
Last night I attended the community conversations at the Viand Restaurant. It was facilitated by the police chief and the head of the chamber of commerce.
We had a small but diverse group of people from old timers to a group of young women from a civics class in Live Oak. We were immigrants and native Californians.
I was quite impressed with the setup and the chance to discuss and dialogue with each other. The two groups concluded that the “middle way” was preferable: using a modest tax on parcels and new development to fund our city services without going further into the hole.
There was an emphasis on maintaining and developing affordable recreation services for our school children and after school enrichment along with affordable services for seniors and adults. The Aquatics Center was not considered an affordable or widely used service for any of these groups and it was recommended that the people who frequent this facility pay for what it costs to run it.
If cuts are to be made it was recommended they be across the board with some questioning of the cost of police (over $100,000 a year per person) because of the retirement benefits they enjoy and suggestions to mitigate these costs.
I was most impressed with the participation and ideas of the young women students present. I have seen their bored faces at the city council meetings, but this was a chance for them to speak and express their opinions in a friendly and welcoming dialogue.
I hope the city can continue to have community meetings on a regular basis on different issues that arise. I think they will eventually catch on and bring more and more of our residents out to participate in the only true democracy left, the local democracy.
P.S. I urge your readers to read Robert Benich’s excellent letter to the editor in the midweek edition (Feb. 21) of the Morgan Hill Times.
Natasha Wist, Morgan Hill
