Responding to your concerns

By David Chadima

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Tuesday's referendum can be boiled down to a cost/benefit evaluation: Will we, the residents of Cedar Rapids, be better off by keeping the money that would be generated by a 1 percent local-option sales tax in our own pockets, or would we be better off by collectively investing it in flood protection and road repairs for the greater good of the community?

We've been engaged in a healthy debate over this issue for several weeks. I'd like to address some of the most widely voiced concerns:

l Why spend $375 million just to protect the downtown area? - The official estimate of the total 2008 flood losses is $3.719 billion; $375 million is 9.4 percent of that. The flood protection system would be a great investment to ensure our community doesn't incur that type of catastrophic loss again.

l Who cares about downtown anyway? - The 2008 total assessed taxable value of (non-exempt) properties impacted by the flood was $1.129 billion, or 20 percent of the city's taxable valuation. Before the flood, more than 13,000 people worked in 923 businesses downtown. Without proper flood protection, investors will not bring businesses into an unprotected flood zone, our employment base will not recover and your property taxes will go up significantly to cover the shortfall. Just as important, virtually all of our cultural assets and heritage are located downtown. Can you think of one city you'd like to live or work in that has a derelict downtown surrounded by mindless sprawl?

l I'm for flood control but I will vote no because there should be a better plan. - No other viable plan is anywhere in sight. This is a professionally developed plan and the process has been open and transparent to the public. It is our best (and most likely only) opportunity to leverage state and federal moneys to help build a system that protects both sides of the river.

l I don't trust the city. - Cedar Rapidians may indeed have legitimate complaints over various past decisions our city councils have made. But this is a referendum on flood protection and road repairs. Voting against flood protection because you're upset about Second Avenue being closed is like not seeking medical treatment for cancer because your doctor hasn't cured a wart on your toe.

l Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, will get more federal money to pay for this so we don't need to. - The No. 1 priority in the nation's capital these days is deficit reduction, as well it should be. The proposition that Congress would grant financial largesse for a community that isn't even willing to contribute to its own protection exceeds the most generous limits of credulity.

l This is just a scheme to make downtown look pretty. - No, it's not. This is for flood protection and street repairs. The downtown merchants impose a voluntary tax on themselves that generates $425,000 per year to make downtown more attractive (which is important, too).

l I'm too busy to vote - If so, please consider visiting a totalitarian state like North Korea to learn what life is like for people who don't enjoy the rights that we do. Democracy only works if you have an informed and engaged electorate.

The route we choose Tuesday will affect our city for generations. We all share the responsibility to engage this issue and make a rational decision based on facts, not emotional responses to partisan politics or demagoguery derived from dyspeptic disgruntlement.

Do the right thing; vote yes.

David Chadima of Cedar Rapids is the director of International Group Activities at ACT Inc. and an investor in the New Bohemia Cultural and Historic District. His viewpoints are his own. Comments: davidchadima

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