There comes a time when pipers must be paid, bullets bitten and
music faced and this is it for the City Council. In order to avoid
a knock-down, drag-out fight among the public over where to spend
the remaining RDA money
– an indoor recreation center or a library – council has to make
a decision that would try Solomon.
There comes a time when pipers must be paid, bullets bitten and music faced and this is it for the City Council. In order to avoid a knock-down, drag-out fight among the public over where to spend the remaining RDA money – an indoor recreation center or a library – council has to make a decision that would try Solomon.
Council has to decide whether or not to continue the planning process to build an indoor recreation center used by only some community members, duplicating the senior center and including a youth center that some experienced observers claim is the last place a teen would ever be seen. Or, council could decide to chuck it all and put the money into building a new library that far more residents can use.
Maintenance and operating costs for the library will be paid by the county library system. Maintenance and operating costs for the recreation center will be paid for by the taxpayers and, if the lovely new community center is an example, and projections for the expensive new aquatic center correct, those costs will be yet another heavy burden on the general fund.
We know lots of people want the recreation center but many of its services are offered elsewhere in the community right now. The Friendly Inn, with some fresh paint and updating, can continue to house the senior nutrition program. El Toro Youth Center, the Mt. Madonna YMCA and the Lighthouse offer programs for kids. The city’s recreation department holds many programs from art to sports at the Community Center.
It’s impossible to wander about town without tripping over a Body Works, Fitness Formula, Curves for Women, 24-hour Fitness or Gold’s Gym – all great places to get in shape. None of these services is free; nor will those offered at the IRC.
When the Morgan Hill Aquatics Center opens for business next year, swimmers can choose among several pools. Paying to cover an existing pool during the winter months seems to us a far more cost-effective path than building an entirely new natatorium.
Whereas, even though we do have a library, it is totally inadequate to the task of supporting more than 40,000 people. It was built to serve a population of 7,000. A library is totally free to all and, with free access to books, magazines, newspapers and the Internet, continues to be the great leveler that Andrew Carnegie and Benjamin Franklin meant it to be.
Putting the recreation center on hold until more money appears is the right choice. Then the center can be built right and we would be thrilled. In the meantime, let’s put our money where it will benefit the most.
And, as long as we are speaking of money, we would urge the council to consider all options for locating a new library. With building on the civic center site estimated at $520/square-foot (an absurdly high amount for a public structure) take another look at the Albertson’s plaza and even the corporation yard on Edes Court.
The yard is owned by the city (no land purchase fees) and is only one-half block away from Monterey Road’s visibility. The Civic Center site is more than five blocks away. The Sunsweet site at East Third and Depot streets is also worthy of consideration, even though its public/private arrangement needs close scrutiny.
