Response to Ms. Mix Letter to the Star

Ms. Mix has been in an exchange of letters to the editor in the Cambridge Star on tax and spending issues. In her last letter she questions the Isanti pedestrian bridge and our stewardship of tax payer resources. Why she brought Isanti or our proposed bridge into a war of words with someone else, I do not know. I do believe it is important to answer such unfortunate statements. Here is the letter I wrote to the Star, but has of yet not been published.

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I was sad to see Ms. Mix drag the pedestrian bridge over highway 65 into her arguments of wasteful spending. I would have hoped that if Ms. Mix has concerns about the pedestrian bridge she would take the time to meet with me. If this had been done she would know that the funding for this bridge does not compete with money for the building of roads. Even if all the federal and state formulas and laws were changed so all dollars flowed to road construction you might be able to eek out a mile or two of road for the total cost of the pedestrian bridge construction. Funding for the bridge will be 80% federal, 10% state and 10% local. The local match would come from our park and recreation dedication fund. This is a fund drawn from developer fees and by state law can not be used for anything other than new park and trail land or equipment and structures.

The pedestrian bridge is needed for the safety of everyone crossing and using the highway 65 and 5 intersection. This intersection was listed as the 8th worst by MnDot in the entire state for 2006. The bridge will provide a safe route over this dangerous area and will link the two sides of Isanti. The linkage is important because the majority of future growth and Isanti’s population will occur east of highway 65 in the next two decades. The 65 corridor through Isanti will be developed with commercial property adding even more traffic to this area. The more pedestrians using the bridge and not darting onto highway 65 traffic increases safety for everyone

The City of Isanti is planning for the future and securing right of way and funding when it is the most cost effective. We are also working with our local land owners and businesses to incorporate the bridge into the commercial growth. The bridge will be linking the east and west commercial properties. By planning this project now we will save money in the future. Often government is criticized for waiting to long and only reacting when a catastrophe occurs; now we are criticized for planning for the future and doing so when cost are at the lowest to the taxpayers. We can not wait until someone is killed crossing the highway to begin our discussions on safety.

I was also concerned by Ms. Mix’s implication that Isanti is not a good steward of the taxpayers’ money. Isanti has cut spending for the first time in our City’s modern history; we cut property taxes in a year that saw our share of the state’s local government aid slashed by 21%. We hired a new police officer in this very same year. We are doing much more with much less and will continue to do so as long as I am in office.

The benefits go beyond safety and helping commercial growth. The bridge will make greater physical activity possible. This bridge will be the only safe crossing over highway 65 in the entire region. When discussions of the bridge began, an affected property owner came in support of the bridge. His own family had been stricken with the loss of a family member trying to cross a highway like 65 and the child died. I have two children of my own; I know their lives and the lives of each Isanti resident are priceless.

The bridge will be linked by city trail and sidewalk and ultimately to trail linking Isanti and Cambridge and our three schools. Isanti and Isanti County are partners with Active Living by Design. A group of dedicated individuals that are trying to help build more active communities which will make us all healthier. They support the bridge, our school district, our Chamber of Commerce, our county, our state senator and representative support the bridge and numerous others. This is not a bridge to nowhere it is a bridge to a safe future.