GUEST COLUMN: CHUCK SWORE

By Chuck Swore

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As a member of the current Cedar Rapids City Council, I did support the extension of the local-option sales tax to repair our streets. As many agree, our streets are not in the best condition and this not only reflects poorly on our city to those who visit, it does a disservice to our citizens who travel them every day.

In addition, the local-option sales tax will benefit local taxpayers by no longer forcing the city to borrow to keep up even minimal improvements in our critical infrastructure. We will now be able to implement a maintenance and repair schedule that would not have been possible without this source of revenue.

We as a Council have a responsibility to provide our citizens with a full and accurate accounting of the funds taken in from the local-option sales tax, and how they are expended. I do believe that as a council, we are, and should be, accountable to our citizens for the decisions we make. This includes conducting our decision-making in a transparent manner.

To this end, I would support regular public updates at council meetings, publishing ongoing and upcoming projects in the media, and on our city website, to keep our citizens apprised of our progress. I would also be open to any suggestions from our citizens concerning how best we as a council might keep them informed.

I know there will be great debate, and some concern over how the projects are prioritized. Everyone believes their road or street deserves immediate attention. For the past several years, I have been the chair of the infrastructure committee, so I have been intimately involved in the progress of the maintenance of our streets.

I believe that the best way to use the funds in an effective and efficient manner is to allow the experienced and professional engineering and streets department staff to determine in an objective manner, what are the actual needs, and in what order they should be addressed. I would then expect our city staff, under the direction of the city manager, to develop the priority list and present it to council for our approval.

Not everyone will agree with the decisions that must be made, but allowing professional judgment to prevail, is, in my opinion, the only way to proceed with this endeavor.

Comments: chuck.swore@cedar-rapids.org