Iola council members have put themselves at a crossroads — unnecessarily.
At Monday night’s special meeting they hedged on whether to put before Iola voters a sales tax initiative that includes support for two new schools for USD 257.
Their concern was twofold: Whether the increase would make Iola synonymous with high taxes and whether locals could shoulder the burden.
The half-cent sales tax would put Iola in league with Parsons and Pittsburg, a smidgen above Humboldt, Fort Scott and Chanute. In other words, it’s not going to cause shoppers to drive to a neighboring town in order to save .0025 percent on groceries. The difference of a $100 purchase between Iola and Fort Scott, for example, is 25 cents.
As far as Iola having a high rate of poverty, that’s true.
But promoting ourselves as a bargain bin community is not the way to go.
A rundown hospital, schools, and city square are not inviting. So what if tax rates are a tad lower, who wants to live in a town that signals decay?
A town’s biggest source of revenue comes from its residents and industries that pay for utilities and services.
Discount shopping is not what brings new industries this way. Rather, it’s good schools, good medical care, a good work environment and recreational opportunities that are the deciding factors.
Just as city and county leaders recognized the potential of a new hospital to the area, so, too, should city leaders view new schools and upgraded infrastructure.
And as with the hospital, the ultimate decision should be the privilege of voters.
— Susan Lynn
If you build it, will they come?
