Helen Carter tells us how the YMCA could prosper with local support. So could the current pool, the current fitness center, the EDA’s golf course, the EDA’s business park, the Pump House Fitness Center, Birch Terrace, etc. But do we change our lifestyle to make it happen? No!
I’ve carried a pool membership for years. Where are the Carters, the steering committee, the school board, the city council, the county board? Certainly not at the pool practicing what they preach! It seems to me all of the above are the dissenters not making what we’ve had for years work. Preaching misinformation and lies breeding mistrust, pointing fingers, calling names while hand-picking who is worthy of participating and who is not. Although I use current amenities I was deemed not worthy.
If the project fails it will not be because of a vocal minority of dissenters as Carter suggests. It will be from poor planning, overbuilding, and not listening to the majority of citizens while trying to please the minority.
The YMCA house of shame is a missed and lost opportunity to build greatness and community. From day 1 it was a dictatorship rather than truly asking the entire community of its needs. The 2009 Grand Marais Community Center Feasibility Study completed by Ballard-King was hid from the public as close to three quarters of a million dollars were flushed down the toilet on two plans of grand ballrooms and fancy fireplaces. The YMCA is about onethird larger than the Ballard-King study says we can support!
Overbuilding will raise my membership by as much as 140 percent. I don’t pay over 100 percent more for anything. It’s nice Carter thinks I should overpay to make her happy but I’ll be dropping my membership. Call me names like dissenter if you must judge me in promoting your Christian organization but it seems to me your non-support has been part of the problem for years now. Seems quite hypocritical!
Tod Sylvester
Grand Marais
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