As the owner of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, I want to express my support for all three ballot initiatives that La Plata County and Durango School District 9-R residents will be voting on this fall.
First, let me make it clear: I am one of the largest property taxpayers in the county, and as I’ve told many people my first instinct is to say “enough is enough!” But I also care about the future of our city and county. Voting “yes” on schools, roads and the airport will be essential to making this an even better place to live for all of us.
On schools, no one wants to move to a bad school district. Ask Detroit. Our schools have been underfunded by the state for years and this vote will help give us better classes, better teachers and keep our classrooms small. These are all important for having high-performing schools.
On roads, people want to be able to drive from Point A to Point B safely, and have the police or ambulances get to their house quickly if they are needed. And, if we let our roads deteriorate, it’s going to be a lot more costly to fix them later. So let’s do it right, now!
Finally, the airport matters to everyone. It helps generate taxes for us, and gives thousands of people the opportunity to work and live here. Take the train as an example. If we lost the business we have from air travel, it could cost us as much as 10 percent of our customers, which in turn could mean the loss of dozens of jobs, from seasonal employees to well-paid full-time personnel. Our terminal is failing and we must build a new one, so we can get better flights and preserve our economic well-being.
So while I don’t like taxes, I know that you don’t get a good community for free either. Please join me in voting “yes” for our schools (3A), our roads (1A) and our airport (1B).
Allen C. Harper, chairman and CEO
Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Durango
