Dear Tucson City Council,

First, let me say that, overall, I think you are doing a pretty great job running Tucson. We've elected you to a thankless job, one that very few people would envy. Managing a town that has all the probloms we do, and one that is fast approaching a million residents, totaly unprepared...well, I think there is little to really complaign about. And your attempts to handle the water probloms we have, with the record breaking drought that we are currently in (granted, this drought is nearly as old as I am, but nevertheless), the anceint pipes, and the less said about the Colorado River Project, the better. But you handle these probloms, especialy with the deck stacked against you, with widsom and a managable level of corruption.
But I want to let you know, that on 16 May, I will be voting a resounding "HELL NO" along with the majority of the population of Tucson. I am writing this so you don't think we are all unfeeling wretches. After all, you would think that the Regional Trasnsportation Plan and the Psychiatric Care Facilities election would meet with approval. The idea of more beds at the Psychiatric Hospital at Kino, and fixing the streets and making public transportation actualy able to transport the public...well, they are both great ideas. Here is the problom: noone on the City Council has been able to talk about these elections with a straight face. Why? Because twice we have voted for an increas in sales tax to go towarrd Kino, and both times that money has gone elseware. And since then, Kino has been taken over by a private firm. Now, if you can explain to me 1)why our tax money was stolen from a population that really needs it and 2)why a private corporation that can totaly afford to take care of this on their own needs our tax dollars, then I might change my vote. As for the Transportation plan...well, again, I don't beleive you when you say that you will actualy do what you say. And the people who will be hurt by this are the poorest of the poor. The people who need public transportation, and who a half cent sales tax increase will really hurt.
Tell you what...we will compromise. DO what you say you will do. Add the 50 psychiatric beds to Kino and build the outpatient psychiatric hospital. Fix the streets and make the buses actualy useable. Then, we will vote to increase the sales tax to pay for it, after it is done. Is that a good deal? OK then.

Sincerely,
A Lifelong Tucson Resident