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Show The Newspaper Thursday, April 30, 1981 Page A3 'THEY LOOK V CUMULUS NOW OPEN ORIS VIRGIL ljttr t til BMitoF SNOW JOB rSAY. DO THOSE CLOUD 5l I f-tst- -j LOOK SERIOUS ? J2'J "7 Alvarez responds to editorial Editor: There is a simple, honest answer to your charge, "don't ask the City Council, because they don't seem to feel it's their responsibility to figure that out for you." You got the answer in your editorial, then chose to ignore the implications of that answer. We are not empowered by the state constitution nor are we elected by the voters to run the city, the school district, the fire district and the sewer district. As much as we might wish, these districts are not a hierarchy with City Council at the top running the whole show. It would be irresponsible and arrogant for council to sit and speculate on the fiscal needs and plans of other boards. It is the responsibility of the citizens and of the press to put the information from all these meetings together. You have attempted that synthesis, but unfortunately your reporting chose to emphasize the negative impact of a highly speculative mill levy increase.' I find it odd that a paper which covers the Planning Commission meetings every two weeks should fail to project an increase in property valuation as the units already approved by the Planning Commission are built out over the next ten years. Since you speculated on the direction of mill levies, I fail to see why you didn't include a little speculation on the direction of total property valuation in both the city and the school district. , The fact that City Council and the School Board do not sit and publicly second guess each other is not evidence of tunnel vision. I feel very upset that the furor over a property tax increase has obscured the importance of city-school district cooperation on the middle school facility. Many hours oT discussion have gone into the planning of a field house facility that would benefit students and city residents while providing taxpayers considerable savings. Throughout the country, cities and school districts have found that taxpayers cannot afford separate, duplicate facilities. If the city is able to participate with the middle school at construction time, considerable savings sav-ings in land costs, site preparation and construction will be realized. Common use of parking spaces will be a further saving. Officials of Piano, Texas, which received a Sports Foundation Gold Medal for excellence in recreational planning, have calculated that if a community's use of schools is limited to school hours, people enjoy only 15 percent of its total potential. If a school is opened during evenings, weekends, and summer months, its usage can increase to 66 percent of its maximum utility, giving taxpayers four times as much use for the same financial investment. Not only will the field house facility serve the community recreation needs, but it will allow the school to host a number of regional and state events. These events attract visitors who stay overnight and spend money in the community. Money that comes back to the residents in wages and in sales tax revenue. You could have provided a public service by debating the need for the. proposed facilities. You could have provided the citizens facts about recreational demand by interviewing city recreation director Bruce Henderson. Hender-son. He could have detailed for you the multitude of programs he presently tries to squeeze into the Memorial Building. You could have interviewed middle school and high school girls and their instructors to explore the schedule conflicts between boys' and girls' team sports in the present school facilities. You could have called the city recreation director at Vail for information informa-tion on the adequacy of the single gym that the city and the school district share at the Sandstone School. You could have interviewed recreation directors from Logan to Ephraim for facts about income from public racquetball courts. You could have explained that much needed and highly-desired improvements, such as Main Street sidewalks and paving, can be funded by the redevelopment agency . without bond elections or mill levy increases. You could have pointed out that Park Avenue paving improvements improve-ments make more sense after the improvement of the Easy Street highway route. You could have explained that the school district wiii have $3.7 million in surplus property to sell and that these funds will go into the capital improvements fund of the district. You could have provided balanced reporting that would have helped the citizens make a rational decision, but instead you chose lo scare the voters with projections of astronomical astro-nomical property tax increases. Yes, property taxes will incrcasi How much is yet to be determined when reasonable cost estimates are gathered and the bond package is complete. ' me of the purposes of Thursday's public hearing will be to present these estimates. It is tunnel vision to plan only for the present. The consequences of pinching pennies for the short term profit are everywhere evident in the city. Anyone who moved to Park City in the last 10 years could readily see that public sector improvements were sadly under funded. The roller coaster mining economy hardly provided funds for essential services, much less recreational recrea-tional and aesthetic amenities. The prevailing philosophy of take it out of the mountains and invest it elsewhere was evident in the scarcity of fine Victorian homes and substantial commercial com-mercial buildings that are common in the mountain mining towns of Colorado. Sadly, this philosophy still prevails in the city. The appreciation in real estate values in the town is so outrageous as to be obscene. A house here is not a home, it is an investment. And as with any investment, it will be improved with a little capital expenditure plowed back into the investment. I regard the bond issue improvements as an investment in the future. The City Council naturally realizes that not everyone can afford such investments. Park City's senior citizens are real estate rich and capital poor. It is not the intent of the City Council to drive these valuable citizens from the city. The City Manager and the City Attorney have been asked to explore options for granting tax relief to those adversely affected by a property tax increase. On April 15, I reluctantly paid my income tax. I would have been happy to have seen a bigger deduction on line 12 Real Estate and a smaller amount on line 66 Balance Due. I much prefer for the highest percentage of my tax dollar to stay in my community, to be spent by local officials subject to local control for projects that benefit my community directly. I appreciate the fact that renters, will bear a portion of the property tax increase without income tax relief. I also know that the planned m&royemerrtl wijl bmefit:tttsegrrieiit! ofihe.opofationigrea4;lyi Throughout the long process of preparing for a bond election, the City Council has made a good faith effort to keep the citizens informed about the costs of the proposed projects. This effort will continue in the public hearing tonight. The residents will have the opportunity to voice their opinion on the proposed bond. On election day, they will have the chance to decide if they want to contribute to projects that will enhance the recreational opportunities oppor-tunities for all citizens, that will beautify the town, that will evidence civic pride and contribute to the growth of Park City as a four-season resort. They may also decide that they cannot afford such improvements and that they wish to remain residents of a municipality that puts great demands on the private sector for improvements, while the public sector continues to cry poor. That is the purpose of the bond election, that the citizens voice be known. Sincerely, Helen Alvarez Chamber gang says thanks Editor: It's been a long time since Park City's seen so many full moons, and those that stayed for the "West Rolls Again" Best Boots and Legs' contest will agree it was a classic competition well worth waiting for. The Chamber would like to extend thanks to those that supported yet another fundraiser in the Park City community, and we'd like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation to those who helped to make "The West Rolls Again" a great success. Thanks to Frank Trunzo, auctioneer, and his gang, who graciously donated their time and talent in making the traditional spring auction better than ever. Thanks also to those who supported the Chamber through their donations for the auction, raffle, and boots and legs contest: Robinson's Finishing Touch, Silver King State Bank, Park City Furniture, Family Jewels and Family Jewels Picture Framing Annex, Pete Park. Tommy Knockers Gifts arid Jewelry, Dick Doty, goldsmith, B bar G Custom Leather, Meyer Gallery. Monarch Meat, First Security Bank, Summit Savings and Loan. Valley Mortgage Co., Treasure Mountain Stables (Dan and Marianne Olseni, Hal Taylor Associates. Minors Only, Richard and Karen Moyle. Janeaux's Restaurant, and David Fernandez, all of whom donated auction items. The Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce. The Virginian Motel, JackMiii. Wyoming. Park City .',:;! ('.mI -HVsl Ski Ilcsort, and ')jv, S'tfbie who made tin :i i-. )ts-ii)ie. Finally, the Design Coalition, Park City Photo, and Holiday Tops, who provided prizes for the "Best Boots and Legs" contestants. There was no doubt that the bidding was fast and furious. But, alas, there's always a top price for any item, and always a Chamber supporter that takes that item home. Thanks to our buyers: Linda Oswald, Bill McComb, Al Horrigan, Merle Huseth, Jim Park, Nancy McComb, Dick Houlihan, Hal Taylor, Rick Prince, Phil Thompson, and Tom Distad. Your enthusiasm is contagious. Once more we will dare to mention the infamous Boots and Legs contest. Special thanks to emcee, Dan Wilcox, who (I think) maintained composure during the unexpected antics of our contestants. Many thanks to our "legs" who prefer to remain annonymous (but if you're really curious, read the wrap-up article in this edition), and thanks to those who sponsored an unforgettable and entertaining ."Best Legs Troupe": Hal Taylor, Rolf Sandberg Construction, Davanza Pizza, Karlynn's, P.C. Photo-Status Gallery, Capson, Morris, McComb, P.C. Print-ink, Print-ink, Jeff Polychronis, Deb & Don Syiponds, Snyderville Sewer District, Elizabeth Shoppe, Royce's, State Farm Insurance, Summit County Title, Coleman Cole-man Land Co., Adolph's, Holiday Inn, P.C. Racquet Club, Park West, Dick Doty, Jody Bernolfo, Stuart Felton, Jan's, Craig Badami, John Newman, Dave Krajeski, Waterbed, Scott Zimmerman, Zim-merman, Raye Ringholz, Ginny Pin-, der, Barney Rosenblatt, Matt Alvarez, Dave Novelle, Dean Barrett, Reynolds & Mammen, architects, Stein Eriksen , Sport, The Corner Store, The Ski Connection, and RSVP Realty. Finally, our thanks go out to Miller Beer, Kat & Mickey, Tom Stover, and the Park City Cowboy Bar staff, the . Utah Stuntman's Association, and our "West Rolls Again" volunteers: Georgia Geor-gia Taylor, Jackie and John Craigle, Demie Miliken, Suzette Ahrendt, Dave Novelle, Cathy Morris, Blake Jones, Kent Gutke and Jan McTyre. ' The Chamber is proud to have the support that alfoTthe aforementioned I- during this fundraiser. We appreciate every one of you more than we can say . Sincerely, The Chamber Gang Thanks for the eggsellent time Editor: We of the Park City Preschool wish to thank everyone who participated in the Easter Egg Hunt held April 18th. It was a huge success both as a fun time for the children and as a fund raiser for the Preschool. We also extend special thanks to the following business people for their contributions: Dave Hanna of Deer Valley Lodging, Piute Creek Outfitters, Bob Scott of Summit T.V., Dick Wilde of Silver King Bank, Alpha Beta, 7-11, and Sparky O'Driscoll of Oakley who loaned us his ponies. Mark Steadman was the lucky raffle winner of a condominium for seven nights in Sun Valley. Jody Bernolfo won the 13" color TV, Judy Kimball won the Piute pack trip and George Williamson William-son won the Kodak instant camera. Any suggestions for improving the hunt are welcome and should be directed to Marlene Ligare at 649-8441. Thanks again. Sincerely. Board members Karen Coleman, Val Chin, Marlene Ligare, Martha Ebbers, Susan Wade, Jana Cole and Shay Clegg Hope nice woodwork doesn't go Editor: Earlier this week we heard on KPCW that a number of work sessions were being scheduled for the Miner's Hospital. Along with a clean-up and garage sale, some demolition is planned for the interior of the building. Among items mentioned was the removal of woodwork and plaster walls. Having spent several years working in the field of historic preservation, I would hope that IF the Miners Hospital contains well-crafted, old woodwork (I have not seen the inside), that this would not be torn out and sold simply to have a "new and modern" interior. If this is not the case, then I do not wish to sound a false alarm. I think those people involved with the library to this point, including Tina Lewis and Judy McMahon, have done an excellent job, and I am certain the future of the library is in good hands. Sincerely, ItickLanman Featuring: Medaillons de Veau Trois Mousquetaires Veal medallions with artichoke buttons, mushroom caps and tomatoes in a c reamy mushroom sauce Veau a la Normande Medallions ot veal garnished with apple slices cooked in Grand Marnier liquor Les Escargots a la Bourguignonne Imported French snails served in a homemade herb butter . Raclette Suisse A specially imported Swiss Cheese melted to perfection served w ith potatoes, pit kles and pearl onions ...and many more items for the gourmet. Elegant dining at its best. Private party facilities available. Park City's most exclusive wine list. 649-5993 ' II) IBMilPi |