Communique to City Council

To me (and I’m writing this in first person to emphasize that these remarks are mine) the dust-up over the appointment of a Longmont City Council member to the board of the Colorado Municipal League is not worth the flared tempers it ignites when the real issue of contention—especially during a stubborn recession like the one we’re in that requires serious cuts in the city budget--is whether the taxpayers of Longmont should continue throwing their money (upwards of $45,000 a year) at this primarily social organization which also performs lobbying. CML depends solely on dues it collects from nearly every city and town in Colorado. Last year the take totaled around $1.765 million, yet CML pays no property taxes on the $1.594 million headquarters property it owns at 1144 Sherman Street in downtown Denver to help support city services and the schools. I say cut the umbilical cord and use these CML dues locally—where the need is greater.