From: "Jim Mork" > First, as to the library, I think we have Highway 55-reroute all over again. That is "this has all been discussed before". No it hasn't. Because whatever got discussed, it wasn't in the context of our huge shortfalls and our staggering debt. That could have been IMAGINED, but until now it wasn't real. Now that it IS real, it has to be considered...<snipped> The thing about warehousing books is that it neednt BE a permanent solution. Of course, when you do it awhile, all these frightening concerns heard from the people who long for the glass palace may turn out to be empty concerns, in which case you make the warehouse a permanent solution.
>But unlike a hugely expensive glass palace, a warehouse can be sold to someone who needs it. Whereas if the glass palace fails, the likelihood of recovering the investment is minimal. Once again, we are operating in the "we're broke" scenario. I'd have to see the records to believe anyone planning the glass palace ever accounted for a "we're broke" scenario. But the time to do so is NOW. I am on the Downtown Library Implementation Committee and I worked in the Minneapolis Budget Office during the 1991 - 1992 budget crisis and worked with people who went through the 1981 - 1982 budget crisis, the "Regan revolution" and even one who went through the 1973 crisis. So I can legitimately say that I have been around for the "we're broke" scenario right where the rubber meets the road. So I can first say, "Don't Panic" (to steal from Douglas Adams). Human beings have this tendency to think that whatever is happening today is what will be for forever. It won't be. Minneapolis has one of the strongest fundamentals of any major city in the country. We are seeing strong investment in the City, we have a thriving downtown, we have not only maintained a strong middle class, we have a growing housing market. None of these fundamentals have changed. We are not sliding into a decline a la Detroit or Philadelphia. Second, we are having a budget crisis for two reasons. First off we are having an economic downturn. This has happened before (about every ten years) and it will happen again. The City has survived each one of these and will survive the future. Second, we have a governor and legislature who created it by giving tax cuts to the rich. Remember that as you look at your tax bill (my property taxes went up 16% - some tax cut). I believe that the same thing that happened in New Jersey will happen here - that a governor hell-bent on chopping government and giving the savings to the rich will take cuts to an unacceptable level and people will force a change. It may be ugly now but it will not be ugly forever. Because of this, the goal of this whole exercise should be about how to get through this hard period, not hacking and slashing services that you will never get back. Third, understand that you cannot trade cops for the library. Cutting the new library will not give you penny one to get yourself out of the current budget problem. The full operating costs for the new library don't hit until 2006. And given what we would have to pay in rent, the new library would be a savings to the operating budget when it comes on line. So if cutting the library doesn't save you in your current budget crisis, why cut it? Well, there are several groups. First off, there are folks who don't understand that cutting the library does not help with your current budget problem. Government finance is very complex and frankly the average person probably doesn't want to waste the brain cells on it. Second off, there are folks who see themselves as guardians of the property tax. Even though 106,000 people voted for a resolution which clearly stated "By voting for this, you are voting to raise your property taxes", they would rather subvert the will of all of these people because they are arrogant enough to think they know better than all these people. Third, there are a few people who want to give the block with the existing library to a developer and make them a good chunk of money. For me, the question about stopping the library is a bellwether about what we want this city to be. Why do I chose to be here instead of buying one of those schnazzy McMansions out in Woodbury? What keeps me here patching together my 1923 Craftsman? The thing that lets us compete is the amenities that the City has. The river. The parks. The old theaters. Skating rinks. The farmers market. Old funky stores like Hymies Records and Lulu's. And amenities like libraries. These are the investments that makes this city viable. When we stop making these investments, people will stop investing too and we will really start to decline. This question is really about the vision that we have for this city and what sort of long-term vision we collectively have. The budget crisis will last two or three years but the library will last for generations. Carol Becker Longfellow PS - there is a lot of discussion about the use of glass on the exterior of the building. A couple clarifying points. The exterior is both stone and glass. There is as much stone as we can afford with the budget, with glass being cheaper than stone. And for those concerned that the glass is going to cause heating problems, given the lights, people, and computers all adding heat to the building, shedding heat from the building is actually a much larger concern than heating it. And for those who think a warehouse library, ask yourself if that is where you want to take your kids on a Saturday afternoon. TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Send all posts in plain-text format. 2. Cut as much of the post you're responding to as possible. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
