An open letter to our City Commission: It is said that a prerequisite for being in government is believing that one knows better what is good for the huddled masses than they know for themselves.
We are beginning to believe that this may be the mindset of most of our elected city officials.
In an effort to better understand what they know, that we don’t, we’d like to verify some things. Let’s see if we understand:
• The City of Harlingen is willing to pay over a million dollars more than the appraised value for the eight acres planned for the new Convention Center.
• The land being purchased is below grade and will take up to a million dollars in fill and hauling labor to bring this very valuable piece of land up to city building codes.
• The City of Harlingen has not annexed the property adjacent to the proposed site creating city protection issues.
• Now that plans are made for the convention center, we are going to look for end users (cart before the horse?)
• The Harlingen water department is increasing our water bills to repair city streets Harlingen cannot afford to repair with our present city budget.
• The City of Harlingen is planning a destination play park, to include a retractable cover for the baseball field (here? where inclement weather is a serious issue?) because everyone knows that Harlingen can, and should be, a destination location.
Do we have it right?
What is it that we don’t understand?
Is it that our city government puts their desires ahead of the city’s needs and that somehow their priorities are out of order?
We’re not the only ones seeing a myriad of problems in these scenarios.
Are you city commissioners listening to your constituents?
Or do you just know better?
Where will we find the money to complete these projects or sustain them?
We are confused … and probably don’t understand.
Ann & John Phillips Harlingen
