McEUEN: Public should have say

Having just read that the City Council and the mayor are NOT going to allow a public vote on the McEuen project because they already represent the people is the last straw. This isn't the first time they have collectively pulled this stunt, which in every case, has major exposure to the taxpayer (you and me). We have a City Council and a mayor whose actions clearly don't represent the constituency that they were elected to represent, no matter what they say! They must represent "John Q Public," which is the general public, and not just the select inner circle on which they seem to focus. They have lost touch with reality and "we the people" they are suppose to represent.

We can't afford to keep spending like there is no tomorrow. There is a tomorrow and there will be tomorrows for a long time to come. With high unemployment, high property taxes, a depressed economy, high health care costs, and a very uncertain financial future why consider spending HUGE dollars of taxpayers' money on a project like McEuen? It may not be a perfect park, but it still is a very good park and serves the needs of most of the taxpayers in our local region.

If you really want to find out what your constituency wants, let them vote! If you don't care what we, as the taxpayer wants, then continue to be our benevolent dictators and create the Aspen, Colo., of the Northwest that most of the citizens of this region can't afford, don't want, and won't be around to enjoy what they ultimately paid to create.

We, the taxpayers, were not allowed to vote on the Educational Corridor and the $3 million city donation of our tax dollars to the Kroc Center. We certainly should have the right to demand a vote on such a huge expenditure that has such ramifications to us, as taxpayers, as the McEuen Project. I, for one, believe there are many better uses of our hard earned taxpayer dollars than this project. These are tough times and people are hurting more than ever. It will never pass if you put it to a vote! If you don't you should all be recalled from your elected offices.

JIM DOTY

Coeur d'Alene