pB:7, v10.11 — Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor

Mountain Views News Saturday, March 12, 2016

MVNews this week: Page B:7

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Mountain Views-News Saturday, March 12, 2016

UUT A MUST!

Dear Editor:

Let me begin by being direct: Measure UUT in the
upcoming election MUST pass. If it does not, then
the long fought battle to preserve Sierra Madre’s
small town charm will have finally been lost. Is
that what the majority of us want? Of course not.
However, there is a relatively small but vocal group
of us who would like you to believe otherwise,
mainly that the City would have plenty of revenue,
even without the UUT, if they only managed the
revenue we do have properly. Well, I’ve taken the
time to look into this, going over the numbers,
talking to people in a position to know etc. and for
what they’re worth, these are my conclusions.

All small towns like Sierra Madre wishing to
maintain their charm and independence struggle
financially and always will. That is the challenge
and why few cities like Sierra Madre still exist. Ours
is a particularly difficult challenge because we’re
not large enough to generate sufficient property tax
revenue and as much as possible we have always
resisted the temptation to outsource our internal
operations or to allow the kind of businesses in
town that would generate considerable sales tax
revenue but bring with them the kind of traffic
we’d rather not have. What I think most people in
town don’t realize is that, in the form of various fees
and assessments ( that we don’t have ), residents
of other like cities in the area pay nearly twice as
much as we do just to live where they do. So in our
case, the UUT is not “ extra ” or an “ add-on ” tax
but rather a mainstay of the revenue required to
run our town. So any assertion that Sierra Madre
has “ plenty of revenue ” is absurd.

As to the accusations of mismanagement, let
me solve that mystery for you. Yes, occasionally
mistakes are made. Yes, sometimes decisions are
made by the City Council and Commissions that
in hindsight could have been better. Occasional
errors are easy fodder for haters but I have never
worked for a company nor been part of an
organization where the same couldn’t be said. The
truth is that there is no “ US vs THEM ” as these
Orwellians would have you believe. Sierra Madre
is self-governed. Members of the City Council
and Commissions are all volunteers from among
US and most City employees are our friends and
neighbors. I have known many of these people for
years and can attest to the fact that they all care
very much about our community and work hard
at their jobs, often working nights and weekends
for which they are not compensated. For those who
have made it a hobby to be critical of these people
and the job they are doing, applications for all of
these positions are available at City Hall.

While it might appear that various City
employees have some pretty lucrative benefit and
retirement packages, I have compared the total
compensation for like positions in other similar
communities in the area and we are right in line,
sometimes a little bit lower, sometimes a little bit
higher but no significant difference overall. All of
these figures are easily available on-line.

By far the largest expense in the General Fund is
for our Police Department. The NO on UUT folks
would have everyone believe that by getting rid of
our PD and outsourcing our law enforcement to
the LA County Sheriff’s Department we would save
money, in fact enough money that the UUT would
be largely unnecessary. There is some truth to this
but very little. Two of the three options presented
by the Sheriffs actually cost more than having
our own PD and the third, while on paper saves
us around $200,000 a year, does so by reducing
personnel and operating out of the Temple City
Sheriff’s station while closing our local facility.
What people may not realize is that this concept
is not new. I attended a Homeowner’s Association
meeting in 1992 where the Sheriff’s made the same
pitch and it’s something that comes up every time
the City is in financial trouble. Polls show that the
vast majority on Sierra Madreans want to keep our
police department but can’t seem to comprehend
that this is a luxury for which we have to pay. If we
truly want this, we have to allocate MORE money
because right now the problem is we don’t pay our
officers enough to keep them or attract new ones.
As a result, half of them have moved on to better
paying jobs and we were recently forced to contract
out the night shift to the Sheriffs on a temporary
basis to the tune of around $100,000 per month.
We can thank all the people who voted NO on the
UUT the last time for this debacle. Maybe at some
point it would make sense to outsource our law
enforcement but that’s a decision that should made
on its own merit and specifically approved by the
voters, not something we are forced to do because
the City is broke.

Of course there are arguments being made on
both sides of the upcoming vote on the UUT and
how to vote may not be as clear to some as it is to
me. For those I would suggest looking at the people
in support of the two sides and their motivation for
doing so. Among those supporting a Yes vote on
Measure UUT are many of Sierra Madre’s leading
citizens, past elected officials and people who have
volunteered countless hours and worked tirelessly
over the years to make and keep Sierra Madre the
charming community we all cherish, yet they are
supporting a measure where they too will have to
pay a little more money out of their pocket each
month if the Measure passes.

On the No on Measure UUT side you have a
few business owners and people who own rental
properties in town where any reduction ( or
elimination ) of the UUT will result in a direct
increase in their personal income. You also have a
lot of people looking for a more credible excuse for
voting against the Measure than the fact that they
selfishly don’t want to pay an average increase per
household of $20 per month. Seriously? By the way,
these are all people who can well afford it because
there are reductions and exclusions built into the
UUT for anyone in our community who can’t.

The fact is: Sierra Madre does not bring in enough
sales and property tax revenue to operate properly
and never will. Therefore, the citizens enjoying
this beautiful community need to pay a little more
just to maintain the status quo. The original UUT
approved by voters was overwhelmingly approved
at 10% and included step-downs over time to 8%
and then 6% in the hope that the economy and the
City’s financial situation would improve. Mostly I
think these reductions were added at the time to
appease the skeptics because when do costs ever
go down? When it dropped from 10% to 8% as
scheduled, it created and annual budget deficit,
even with the City making some serious cuts
across the board. The reduction of the UUT to
6% is schedule for this coming July 1st and if that
happens, there are no more cuts to make and we’ll
have to start selling off many of the things we love
about Sierra Madre that we’ve always taken for
granted. The upcoming YES vote on UUT will
prevent that from happening and return the UUT
to the original 10%. Still not enough ( 12% would
be better ) but without this, our City will be in deep,
deep financial trouble. The saddest part is that in
most cases were talking about a monthly increase
per household that is less than the cost of a large
pizza.

To paraphrase Dr. King who so eloquently made
the point; the problem is not those for or those
against but rather the apathy of those who don’t
get involved. If Measure UUT doesn’t pass it will
be a knock-out blow to our community and those
of you who voted against it and especially those
who didn’t bother to vote for it, will have no one
but yourselves to blame. As happened last time, I
wonder how many of these people will later deny
doing either?

While I encourage everyone to vote Yes on
Measure UUT, that alone may not be enough. Talk
with your neighbors send emails etc., especially
to people you know don’t usually vote. We are
fighting for our community and it is going to take
a community effort to win. Please vote on APRIL
12th and if you love Sierra Madre, VOTE YES ON
MEASURE UUT.

Jeff Dapper, Sierra Madre

Dear Editor:

In the upcoming April election, we have the
opportunity to determine the financial health of
our city. At stake is Measure UUT. If passed, it
would return our Utility User Tax to the 10% level
held until 2015.

The City Council held many town-hall meetings
to explain and discuss the financial issues. A revenue
commission studied and then recommended a
raise in the UUT. After considering a 12% UUT,
the City Council opted to propose Measure UUT,
which raises it to 10%.

Several important things to know about the
UUT:

It is an elegant tax—all of it goes directly to the
City’s General Fund. Unlike sales or property
taxes, which are divided among many entities.
Simple and direct.

Should the City ever need to borrow money,
it will help our credit rating, and therefore the
interest rate we pay, to be able to show that the City
has a steady source of income.

Everyone will pay proportionately to their utility
usage.

To me, the results of the workshops and meetings,
showed that we do not want to sacrifice our quality
of place or life here. This is a very small price.

Renee Cossutta

March is Women’s History Month, and it’s a
wonderful opportunity to be grateful for all of
the amazing contributions women have made
to our world. This year is the 150th anniversary
of Mary Baker Eddy’s discovery of Christian
Science. Because of its profound effect on
the lives of many people and her efforts as its
founder, Eddy was then one of the most famous
women in the United States. The founder of the
Red Cross, Clara Barton, said in an interview
published in the New York American in 1908
that she looked upon Mary Baker Eddy as “the
one person, regardless of sex, living today,
who has done the greatest good for her fellow-
creatures and that Christian Science itself is
the most remarkable as well as potent factor in
religious life.”

In 1866 Eddy fell on the ice in Lynn,
Massachusetts and was thought to be dying
by both her physician and pastor. In bed, she
asked for her Bible and read one of Jesus’
healings. While pondering this healing, she
deeply felt God’s love and healing power. She
then quickly recovered, getting up out of bed
and surprising those who had expected her to
die. From that point on she was healthier than
she had ever been. Instead of being satisfied
with her new-found health, she realized that
there must be a law behind this healing. Jesus
healed consistently. So she spent the next three
years studying the Bible to understand the
Science behind Christian healing. In doing so
she also healed many through what she called
scientific prayer, which is an affirmative prayer
instead of a prayer of petition. She viewed Jesus
as the most scientific man that ever lived, a
Christian Scientist, because he had dominion
over all the challenges that he faced. He healed
the sick, raised the dead, walked on water,
and stilled storms, all through spiritual – not
material – means.

One doctor, unable to heal his patient,
observed Eddy heal his patient through prayer.
He urged her to write a book on this healing
method, so she spent many years writing and
editing Science and Health with Key to the
Scriptures, which is the full explanation of
Christian Science. Many have have been healed
by reading this book and understanding the
prayerful healing method that has been set
forth.

If you would like to learn more about
this remarkable woman and the healing
perspective of Christian Science, come to a
free lecture given by Evan Mehlenbacher a
practitioner and teacher of Christian Science
at First Church of Christ, Scientist, 942 E.
Altadena Dr., Altadena, CA on Sunday, April
3rd at 2:30 pm. (626 797-8403) Free parking
and childcare is provided. Information on
Christian Science and Mary Baker Eddy may
also be found at MaryBakerEddyLibrary.org
and ChristianScience.com.

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

Photo courtesy of The Mary Baker Eddy Library,
Boston, MA

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Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com