I am no longer actively involved in any
civic discussion but I must comment on recent actions by the Commission and
comments from the public. I strongly support actions
to preserve items and icons of lasting interest and
applaud the efforts of the commission members and especially those of Mark
Peterson from the Historical Society. There
is, however, another side to this that I wish to
comment on.
The viability of any unit
of government is dependent on the income generated in that unit. In this case
we're talking City of Winona. Income generated by individuals,
business
and industry create value and that is referred to
as a tax base. A tax base, in turn, tells the City what the public can afford.
An increase in valuation is a positive step because
we have more vaue and can use that to either
provide additional services or to reduce our taxes. Therefore, it is in our best
interest to use what we have to generate revenue.
Unoccupied buildings and greenspace are
debits in the accountants journals..They do not produce revenue but require
maintenance and frequently deny opportunity..
Am I referring to the old buildings on third
Street, the Julius Wilkie, The Lamberton . House or to none of them. It
really doesn't matter..Any structures that have outlived their
usefulness are a liability and unless we can
determine a viable option for future use we should look at alternatives. Some
have suggested the City assume the costs of
renovation or to purchase. This course of action
would foreclose any possibility of producing income and would add immensely to
the citie,s liabilities.
Many of us like old buildings and familiar
surroundings but how many can we afford?
