To the editor:
As a past member of the Presque Isle City Council I have debated whether or not to weigh in with my thoughts on current Council decisions.
I am well aware of the difficult decisions that need to be made at that level when it comes to leading a community through both good times and bad. However, there are things that need to be said regarding the recent Council decision on the Fire Department and the citizen reaction to other decisions of the Council. The fact of the matter is there is way too much talk and not much listening going on either by the council or the citizens.
First the Council. You have not been listening to the public regarding the whole issue of services provided this city and in particular our public safety – both police and fire. Sometimes as leaders we forget to listen to those we are leading, not that they always provide a direction. What I have learned is that in Presque Isle the public is quiet and happy when they are getting the local needs met, when the roads are plowed in a storm, when there is a fire the response will be quick and professional, and when they call the police the response will be the same. They want good service at City Hall, a library that serves the needs of all citizens and keeps up with societal change, and recreation department that provides health, fitness and recreation to all segments of our community. They want good education for their children. They want what we have right now and are not asking for more. They care that services are delivered in an efficient manner and that tax money is not wasted. It is what we have come to expect and what we are willing to pay for.
This current Council has lost sight of all of this. In their letter to the editor December 14 there are some self-serving comments made to justify their actions. The City has not depleted the available surplus. In addition to the funds required to be kept on hand by our own financial policy, we have an emergency fund that is available for events that threaten the viability of the community as a whole. The continued harping on Presque Isle’s tax rate is a disservice to the community and, contrary to what the Council would have you believe, the tax “rate” is not the deciding factor in whether or not someone moves to the community or a business locates here.
The rate is an artificial figure reflective of the valuation of the properties in a community and is not indicative of the taxes anyone might pay on their property. In other words if your value goes up the rate can go down and yet you still pay the same amount in taxes. Communities with a much smaller rate than Presque Isle can actually have taxes that are higher.
People and businesses make decisions on the total package of available services and recreation, housing availability, and neighborhoods. In other words, the quality of life. When people make choices about living in a surrounding community it is not because our taxes are so high.
Just do the math. Transportation and increased insurance costs will more than offset the difference in taxes. We should never assume the motivation of anyone in selecting the community they want to live in is based on the tax rate alone. The Council has other options. It always comes down to options. When the cost of doing business goes up in the private sector and the demand for the product stays strong private business will do what it can to stay lean and mean but in the end, will raise its prices to stay solvent and keep delivering what people want or need. And we hardly complain.
The public sector is no different. When the cost of providing services goes up and the demand for the service stays strong then one of the options is always to raise prices – in this case taxes (or other revenue sources as has been suggested several times). Since no one is coming forward to say they want fewer services, or watered down services, I strongly suggest to the Council that they change course and come up with a better plan to fund what the people want. To tear down what is already in place will do nothing to attract anything or anyone new to our community.
Now to the citizens. You (we) are not listening either. Though I disagree with some of what the Council is doing make no mistake in believing that all of it is bad. The rumors and stories I hear out on the street and from many of my friends is appalling. Disappointing me the most is the unwillingness to accept change and the complete disrespect of new ideas and of people. I will tell you that I was never so embarrassed in all my time here in Aroostook as I was attending one of the two meetings on the conceptual plan to deal with traffic in the downtown. The condescending and sarcastic talk, the blunt rudeness to community leaders and visitors and the mob mentality that emerged made me wonder where I had landed.
I continue to hear terrible comments made to and against the City Manager who was hired to position Presque Isle for the future through long-term planning, budget development, and economic development. In order to accomplish those goals there had to be a restructuring of the workforce and a change in the way Presque Isle functions. The Council gave the marching orders yet the Manager now has become a target and is blamed for things he had no hand in.
The idea of an assistant manager was talked about before the current city manager was hired and is part of the bigger picture. The downtown traffic study and plan is part of a process begun years ago based on the bigger picture. Moving solid waste disposal from the tax base to the user is based on the bigger picture.
Presque Isle is too big to be a small town and too small to be a big city. But, we have crested that wave and whether anyone wants to accept it or not, we are Aroostook’s Bangor, Portland, or Lewiston with the same issues those cities face and the same challenges. And we have to start acting like it.
In the 31 years I have lived in the County (and for decades before) Presque Isle citizens and their leaders have made conscious and deliberate decisions to become the center of economic development, commerce, recreation, and education that we are today. It is truly a shame to see some actions of the Council tear down what has been achieved in the pursuit of personal agendas and to see the citizens working in opposition to ideas that will take Presque Isle to that next level.
So, I urge the 2012 Council to join with the citizens in a dialogue that includes a good deal more listening than talk. The recent discord has encouraged more people to take an interest in the community and that is an encouraging sign as long all parties remain open minded and respectful of other people’s opinions. Presque Isle is growing and the world is moving on. We must all move forward with it.
Calvin F. Hall
Presque Isle
