Wise public spending will keep village vibrant

In last week’s paper, Kevin Wernet concluded his anti-Schuetz diatribe with this question: “When is enough enough and the spending going to stop?”

What spending is he talking about? The only issue before us is the purchase of the Schuetz property as part of the Comprehensive Plan’s community park. WE can make this purchase at 65 to 75% off because of the value placed on it by the state and Dane County, And, then, we can leave its development to future village boards.

Wernet and his supporters, namely Village President Chris Klar, Don Havlik, David Doll, and Keith Green, rant about high taxes, out-of-control spending, overburdened taxpayers, etc. They talk in sound bites meant to outrage. They want to engender fear, not thought. They never talk about what s worthwhile about public spending.

I want to talk about that. I want to talk about the generations before us who understood the value of public spending for the public good. They invested in the high school, in Waubesa School, in every school we have.

They invested in our parks and playgrounds. They invested in roads, in our first and second libraries, in an EMS service, a fire and police department, a Municipal Center. They considered future generations in their spending decisions, and we are the beneficiaries of that long-term thinking.

The Schuetz’s are thinking of the long term. I thank them for their steadfastness in the face of pressure from all sides to sell to developers. Wernet and company (see above) are part and parcel of that pressure.

Wernet and company (see above) think only of today. Instead of a community park accessible to all, do they want half-acre lots accessible only to those who can afford them? Instead of a multi-use park that will serve us as we grow, do they prefer a small playground serving only those who live near it? Instead of a natural area linking already-planned regional trails and open to everyone, do they want another development open to no one?

This is what developers will do with Schuetz property. This is what Wernet and company (see above) consider worthwhile. They think of deals made, profit assured, and friends rewarded. They may protest, but their actions speak for themselves.

Call or write the village board, especially Steve Jackson, its newest member. Tell them that wise public spending for the public good is the way to keep our community vibrant. Tell them that without wise public spending, this community will die a slow death.

And lastly, tell them that we prefer thinking and planning to ranting and raving.

Sheila Plotkin

McFarland