Letter: Mercer Island Reporter School Bond Endorsement Deeply Flawed

Editor:

Editor Ms. Mary Grady’s editorial “Our Students Can’t Wait” (3-28-12 MI Reporter) is dead wrong in her assessment of why “are citizens uneasy” about this school bond.

Her implication that the voters just needed more time to "process" the school plan and bond idea is incorrect. Voters could have examined the MISD plan and bond until the sun burns out, and it wouldn’t make a fundamentally flawed plan look any better. Further, there are many more reasons, and more important reasons why MI citizens should vote a clear and resounding NO.

Three reasons for ambiguity that Ms. Grady cited, namely tearing down schools with remaining life, finding space for incremental student additions, and better using existing school sites are true, but are only some of the important reasons to Vote NO.

Examples of other key reasons that she missed include the concern that the proposed added capacity is mostly in the WRONG location (added capacity is needed on the north end, not primarily the south). 

The plan doesn’t yet integrate with overall MI community’s requirements (e.g., traffic impacts, overall taxation impact for critical infrastructure needs) and other reasons. “Vote NO” reasons go far beyond her rationale. 

However, even looking at Ms. Grady’s own limited set of arguments, such as needing adding pupil capacity soon, argues eloquently against her own flawed voting recommendation and conclusion. The facts instead argue for citizens to send a resounding “VOTE NO” message on this flawed bond, and force a significantly improved and better justified MISD re-plan, for next time.

Tom Imrich

Three decade plus MI resident

(Ed. Note: Mercer Island Patch does not generally assume or advocate our own editorial positions on political issues, and will therefore not offer any endorsement in this election.)