16/60 - no real news

Seems some people love to argue publicly here AND on Facebook!  What can I say!   And who says my opinion isn't popular?  Are we in a popularity contest now?  Do I kick and scream over other peoples opinions?  No.  Life is way way to short to get angry and point fingers. Wasted effort.    

***********************

Anyway.

I attended the 16/60 reconstruction meeting last night and there was really no major news.   Seems some people getting a new road do not want to have to pay for it.  

Well attended - no real news

On the Columbus Journal there was an article about the 16/60 reconstruction and a comment was "WHY DON'T THEY FIX THE ROADS INSTEAD OF THIS"

wait . . what??  Do they understand what the 16/60 reconstruction is.   And I'm going to start asking people who complain - What road exactly do they want fixed, or is it just a general complaint without really thinking about it.  People want roads fixed UNLESS it's their road that they will have to pay for.  

In the past there was little communication between the three departments.  A road would be fixed and then a year later torn up because no one asked the sewer people or Water and Light people what THEIR plans were.  Hopefully we are getting a grasp on this and all sides are now talking and coordinating.   

It seems people want everything RIGHT NOW!  Well, in the real world things take time. Old towns have old roads, it's a fact of life. We're not Cottage Grove - they have GREAT roads because they grow and put new roads in but then THEY complain to their government because they don't have a downtown like Columbus. Has there ever been a town where the citizens didn't complain about something?  Not that I've ever lived in. 

Even without Enerpac stalling road construction for a couple years Columbus has been slowly improving and hopefully the pace will quicken. Folsom and Mill Street are being talked about and that is about 1.3 million dollars.  But it seems we have a ton of money now that we can borrow. 

I personally don't like borrowing money for anything, even roads. A 1 million dollar loan at 2% interest will cost another $214,220 over 20 years.  BUT, if that is what people believe will make Columbus vibrant, so be it.  I attended a town hall type meeting that the Library put on last week with about 20 people. I sat in the background and listened to them list off all the problems with Columbus. Roads were not even mentioned as one of the 20 problems,  the lack of a bike path was though!

I suppose now I will be called anti-road.  No - there are many things to focus on and roads are only one thing. 

  

If we do borrow money why not THEN borrow money to fix the 100 year old pavilion which will give us a pay back with extra rentals. Then the extra we get can go for roads . . . . down the road.

How about combining the Senior Center and Library into one building and have a Community Center, use the old library as a museum. That would save money.  How about seat belts for school buses or maybe hire another adult to ride on school buses (I suppose that would be a school board issue).  Maybe a new Fire Station?  

**************************

Well, I would love to anger more people but I have a brand new bed arriving and some work to do with the old platform and like 500 screws to unscrew with a hand held screwdriver.  My tool box is at The Workshop.  

Carry on, be calm.