Letter: Vote 'no,' and 'yes' to more information

To the editor:

Contrary to what some community members say, community members with different perspectives do support education and advocate “common sense.”

Many community members want to wait until the major risk factor, the energy/utility tax settlements, is resolved. Only then will we know what the overall tax impact will be to residential property taxpayers. Common sense would dictate that we should not increase residential property taxes by hundreds of dollars each year for the next 20 years until this risk factor is determined.

The current referendum will be paid in full in 2022. No debt, new possibilities.

Wait until 2022 before making a long-term investment. Spend the time now to research what the community will support. The Wrenshall school board must invest more time and resources into learning what community members want and stop deciding what we need. There are known costs as well as pros and cons connected to any number of facility options available to our community.

Wait until 2022. Survey what community members think about consolidation or merging with another local district. Or, if we built a new school in Wrenshall, should it be PreK-12, PreK-8, PreK-5, or a charter school? How much do the operating costs differ, making one more economical than the other? Informed and knowledgeable citizens make good decisions.

Students in 10th grade can now enroll in career and technical education courses at any number of schools, including Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College or Lake Superior College. Tuition is paid in the same manner as the Post Secondary Education Option (PSEO) program, and qualifying students receive transportation reimbursement. The career areas are massive with technical applications from accounting to skilled construction trades, agricultural power and equipment to nursing, law enforcement to industrial maintenance technician. Utilizing existing resources is a better taxpayer investment than re-creating what already exists.

Michael Rabideaux,

Silver Brook Township