Saturday, January 16, 2010

Alan Stout's Letter to the Editor 01/14/10: The Problem Won't Go Away

Everyone in the New Paltz school district knows that something needs to be done about the middle-school problem, but some people don't seem to understand that we're going to have to pay for it. One way or another, our taxes will have to be increased for the sake of our children.

The school board has spent almost five years studying the problem. Many board members have given countless hours of their time to work out the best solution for the students and for the community. No one who is opposing the middle school has really studied the situation in the same depth. Opposers are simply against a tax increase, any tax increase.

But the middle-school problem is not going to go away. It will just get more expensive. One thing I have in common with the middle-school opponents is that I don't like to see big tax increases either. That's why I think we should all vote yes and get this project going as soon as possible. Let's not waste ten million dollars on emergency repairs.

We should recall Benjamin Franklin's famous words that "... in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes." Any New Paltz taxpayer who expects to live for a few more years is going to have to help pay for the middle school.

A corollary to Franklin's observation is that "delay costs more money." Check with almost any economist or read the business news. Experts agree that both interest rates and construction costs are comparatively low at this time. Costs are certain to rise as the economy recovers. Right now is the right time to renovate the New Paltz Middle School.

Alan Stout
New Paltz

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