Laurel Heights

SPURS WIN!!...SO CAN WE

We want to take this opportunity to congratulate the San Antonio Spurs professional sports organization for its great victory in obtaining what every professional basketball franchise seeks, the national basketball championship. It has been a long struggle for the franchise but the persistence has paid off in this shortened season of 1999. One of the things David Robinson has repeatedly stated is that this team had a vision and a goal…to win the championship…to win it all.

We in San Antonio, the nations second fastest growing city, need to adopt David’s vision as well and apply it to our own view of San Antonio. During these periods of accelerated growth it is very important to refocus on the things that are vital to accommodate this activity. We need to rededicate ourselves to the principles that make a city truly great. For San Antonio this means planning for the basics; replacement of deteriorating streets, more urban services and fewer user fees, a dedicated effort to bring industry that supports higher living wages, and a movement to reduce poor fiscal management and squandered taxpayer dollars on ill conceived capital projects that do not pass strict cost-benefit modeling.

We live in a fast growing community that continues to evidence the polarity between the haves and the have-nots. Many of our neighbors are enjoying the opportunity afforded by a rapidly expanding economy and the dynamics of historically low interest rates. However, another large percentage of our community is also expanding in the other direction. While a growing poverty class may bode well when it comes time to obtain CDBG funds it is unfortunate that these monies may not find themselves really allocated to the elimination of that poverty. We enjoy the accolades attributed to the second fastest growing city in the US but we are also the host of an ever-growing population below the poverty level. This is a very difficult and painful situation because of this very visible dichotomy.

As we approach the end of this century we should dedicate ourselves to finding a way to put back into the community tangible evidence of our commitment to improve the quality of life for everyone, not just those that are well connected. Let us learn from our previous painful experiences such as the Hemisphere Arena tear-down, the Convention Center Expansion/BIH scandal, the Applewhite program, and the most recent SAWS/Alcoa Aluminum contract…all of which have or will cost taxpayers/ratepayers a bundle of money that could have been used more wisely elsewhere in our city.

We need to decide if we want a unified San Antonio where everyone has access to opportunity or a divided city where a few select districts control almost everything. One of the best examples of this type of parochial invasion involves the SAISD Bond Program and the project review group that was appointed to act as oversight committee. Most of the bond committee slots are occupied by non-SAISD residents. There is very strong influence being given to diversity of architectural styles but little consideration for cost containment. New schools under construction in other area school districts are being built at much lower cost even though the foundation/excavation costs may be higher because the community served demands efficiency and is tired of ever increasing revenue demands. Would any other school district invite non-residents on such a grand scale to supervise and direct its growth and distribution of fiscal resources?

Finally, as we reflect on the great accomplishments of our San Antonio Spurs and begin to entertain the notion of rewarding the franchise with another arena go-around remember the San Francisco Giants and their very progressive and innovative solution to a much needed new stadium…they built it themselves without taxpayer assistance…thank you very much