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Health & Fitness

Vote YES for the Bonney Lake Metropolitan Park District (MPD) on April 23, 2013 - Part 6

Why I will vote YES for the Metropolitan Park District on April 23, 2013.

Who am I and why am I working to get the Metropolitan Park District approved? I have been a resident here on the plateau for the past 40 years. I’m a retired (that means I’m on a fixed income) communications engineer. Towards the end of my 37 year career I found out that I had Multiple Sclerosis. This hastened my departure from a career that I thoroughly enjoyed.

That was 10 years ago, and since I found myself with some idle spare time on my hands, I got involved in my community by attending city council meetings and becoming active in different groups whose purpose was to improve things in and around the city. My time was spent with the Greater Bonney Lake Historical Society, Greater Bonney Lake Veteran’s Memorial Committee, Beautify Bonney Lake, Bonney Lake Park Board, Red Cross, a Multiple Sclerosis Support Group in Tacoma, etc.

After joining all of these groups I found out that I was slightly over extended so, even though I enjoyed the work and found it very rewarding, I had to back away from  some of these activities.

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I was really sorry to eventually quit the Park Board, not because it was too much work, but because for three years we never had a full board, and we were trying to do a lot of work but without having a Parks Department that was part of the “mayor’s cabinet”,  our message just wasn’t being heard.

I see the Metropolitan Park District as being the city’s first real opportunity to implement a  program that will not only properly operate and maintain our existing parks but might also be able to expand our parks to meet the requirements of today and tomorrow for our kids and grandkids.  Of course, this assumes the recommendations provided in the Parks Element of the Comprehensive Plan will be implemented

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Remember, the Parks Element is a guideline which needs to be tweaked and periodically updated to keep it current I believe one of the new Park Board’s first jobs after the Metropolitan Park District approval should be to hire a professional Parks Director. This is something that has been lacking in this city. We’ve had visions put forward by various members of staff, mayor and city council, and the citizen’s advisory Park Board, but without   the dedicated funding to construct, implement, operate, and maintain any facilities, our city has fallen short on providing for its citizens. As a retiree, why do I care if we approve a Metropolitan Park District? During my 40 years here I’ve witnessed a tremendous amount of growth. Most of it has been welcomed, but some has not. The days of walking a trail through the forest, playing ball in a vacant meadow, or even safely biking along a country road are long gone. No longer are most housing developments required to leave a natural greenbelt which provided opportunities for trails and wildlife corridors. Now we allow developers to clear cut the land, and they are under no obligation to provide recreational amenities to their residents. Their focus is usually on profit, not on developing a better quality of life.

Since most of us are not blessed with a lot of acreage or an enormous bankroll that allows us to build our own personal swimming pool, ball field or trails, we rely upon our governing community to provide these things. It benefits everyone who wants a safe, non-motorized transportation alternative, like trails, and it gives us greater opportunities to engage in an active, healthier lifestyle. This can only be done when we share the responsibility and the cost.

Before I leave you I’d like to say that when you voters have approved the Metropolitan Park District, no tax will be initiated until the Park Board has identified a project to develop, or until such time as the city turns the parks over to the Metropolitan Park District. This is not expected to happen until possibly 2014 at the earliest. Once created, is this a “forever tax” like the Tea Party would like us to believe? NO –the state provides methods for this tax to be overturned or even the dissolution of the MPD, if a majority of the voters wish. This is the democratic process. The people have the ability to decide.

I have presented information that I understand to be factual to you in the series of blogs I have written. It is up to each voter to read the information and make your own decision. I have researched the issue, and although my income may be limited, I believe the $10-$20 per month (check your possible tax impact on the city website at http://www.ci.bonney-lake.wa.us/section_government/property_tax_allocator.shtml) that I might pay to have a trail along Fennel Creek, a sports complex where I can watch my grandchildren play ball, or perhaps a swimming pool to engage in a little water aerobics during the long winter months is well worth it. I would be able to do all of these things right here in Bonney Lake and not have to drive or take a bus to some other city. As you can tell, I am in favor of the MPD, and I hope that you will also look beyond the Tea Party rhetoric and make up your own minds.

Thanks for your time and consideration.

Following provides information and links to the earlier blogs:

Part 1 of this blog was about the existing parks in the city and that article is available at: http://bonneylake-sumner.patch.com/blog_posts/vote-yes-for-the-bonney-la...

Part 2 of the blog was about undeveloped land owned by the city that could be turned into trails and parks and that article is available at: http://bonneylake-sumner.patch.com/blog_posts/vote-yes-on-the-bonney-lak...

Part 3 is about the shortfall that exists in the city at this time based on standards set at a national level. That article is available at: http://bonneylake-sumner.patch.com/blog_posts/vote-yes-for-the-bonney-la...

Part 4 is about why we need parks today versus what things were like 100 years ago and had a focus on Cedarview Park. That article is available at: http://bonneylake-sumner.patch.com/blog_posts/vote-yes-for-the-bonney-la...

Part 5 is about why I feel that we need trails and sports fields and the article is available at: http://bonneylake-sumner.patch.com/blog_posts/vote-yes-for-the-bonney-la...

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