Dear Editor:
I was the only council member to vote against funding the hockey rink with city taxes. This wasn’t because I don’t love hockey, because I do. It was because city property taxes are already too high. Cambridge ranks No. 2 in the state for cities over 5,000 in city tax rate.
I don’t apologize for ardently supporting citizens and businesses that are struggling to pay these high taxes. City property taxes are going up to pay for this hockey rink. Those living in the townships pay hundreds of dollars less in property taxes than we do in the city and will not pay for this rink with their taxes.
I proposed that the city council put the library, hockey rink, and an outdoor pool all on the same referendum.
I said that we could all work together to make this happen with the local option sales tax that would be paid for by everyone that shops in Cambridge. Council members Lisa Iverson and Joe Morin and Mayor Marlys Palmer did not support that proposal. They voted to pay for the hockey rink with park dedicated funds and $513,000 of city taxpayer and discretionary money.
Howard Lewis
Cambridge City Council