53°F
weather icon Clear
Boulder City, NV
Rose Ann Miele

Change to growth ordinance not good for residents

Rose Ann Miele
More Stories
Power of people remains at polls
Smiles plant seeds of hope
Action behind opinion sets city apart from others
Good health for nation, planet priceless
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review
May 17, 2017 - 2:29 pm
 

The other day, I found something I had written in May 1967. I didn’t believe my eyes. Fifty years ago I wrote that I wanted to do exactly what I am doing today.

I wasn’t writing about retirement or living in Nevada. I wrote about how I wanted to live my life and what I could do for my community. While grandiose ventures requiring large amounts of cash never materialized, I have no idea what exceptional work has been or will be done by the countless number of students, friends, acquaintances and even strangers I may have touched in some way.

Influencing people one at a time works. Ask the ad agencies. There was a time when I felt I had to persuade hundreds of people immediately to see things my way, support my cause or vote for my candidate. The older I get, the more I see that individual, face-to-face conversations with people are the best, most lasting way to go.

I believe strongly in many issues, and I don’t hide that fact. I have the opportunity now to share with you my position on Ballot Question No. 1. Here is the question: Shall the Boulder City Code be amended to entirely eliminate Subsection D of Section 11-41-11 which currently limits the award of allotments to not more than 30 dwellings for a single development in a construction year; and to amend Subsection E of Section 11-41-11 accordingly; and to provide a new Section 11-41-15 for the reservation of 20 allotments for small developments, while keeping the total number of allotments available in any given construction year to no more than 120 allotments?

I will vote no on question No. 1 for a number of reasons. Size, whether it is big, small or in between, matters. If you live here because you enjoy small town life, it is crucial to keep the regulations in place to control that size. Taking a path toward increased size will change Boulder City. Once protections are removed, it is difficult, if not impossible, to go back. You know what you have. You don’t know for certain what you will get.

The city is not in decline. The city budget is healthy. The city needs to examine a variety of methods to implement technology in order to cut costs and increase productivity, not look to increased residential growth as a “solution” to issues which, I believe, do not exist.

Is school enrollment a problem in Boulder City? Whether it is or not certainly warrants a discussion, but where students attend school is a parent’s responsibility. Rules governing school attendance are put in place by the school district. Want changes? Demand the legislature properly fund public education with your taxes. Attend school organizational team meetings. Make public education priority No. 1.

I am voting no on Question 1 because growth costs money. If we can’t fund more services now, and city employees are stretched thin, adding more residents only increases demand. Are funds from new residents going to be used to pay for what we need now? If so, we are back to square one: city employees stretched thin. Growth isn’t going to pay for additional services.

The safeguards in the ordinance were put in place for a good reason. Residents wanted Boulder City to remain small and have measures of control. Just because the city receives no bids or one bid on a parcel of land is not a sufficient reason to change the ordinance.

The ordinance was not adopted to benefit developers. It was put in place by the citizens for the citizens. Whether a developer can “make money” on a project is not a reason to change the ordinance. To facilitate a developer(s) is not a reason to change the ordinance.

Change always happens. More homes will be built in the years to come, but under controlled circumstances if we vote no on question 1.

The most important thing for all of us to do is get out and vote. If you can’t get out to vote, vote by mail/absentee ballot. Here are directions: http://bit.ly/2r7ntCb. There’s no reason to skip voting.

Rose Ann Miele is a journalist and was public information officer for Boulder City for nine years. She can be reached at roseannrab@hotmail.com or at 702-339-9082.

MOST READ
THE LATEST
Power of people remains at polls
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

This Sunday is the first anniversary of the Women’s March. Don’t fret, I’m not writing a commercial. I’m looking at a very abbreviated history of individuals coming together to make a statement.

Smiles plant seeds of hope
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

Before I sit down to write any commentary, I spend lots of time daily thinking about how to begin. What happened today? What needs addressing? I take so many things so seriously, I end up changing the focus daily. As soon as I submit one commentary, I begin thinking about the next. This one took longer than usual.

Action behind opinion sets city apart from others
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

For more than two decades, I’ve been getting to know Boulder City folks. I baked, cooked and waited on them at local restaurants. I reported news to them. I served them as foundation director at Boulder City Hospital. I worked as Boulder City’s public information officer. I ran for City Council and continue to be involved in city issues and volunteer organizations.

Sharing opinion first step in getting involved
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

Worrying could be a full-time job. You worry about yourself, the kids, relatives, your job — an endless list. There’s no energy left to get involved with city issues, much less volunteer your time. How can you do everything? Why should you?

Small investment in others reaps large rewards
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

What makes you so excited that you want to get up and do something? While that’s a matter of individual choice, let’s look at just two examples.

More need to see, study ‘Gateway’ plan
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

I’ve been sharing this link to the Hoover Dam Gateway plan (http://www.bcnv.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04192017-386) on Facebook. It points to the April 19 Planning Commission agenda packet. To read the plan, you must go to page 113, since it is not a single document.

Let’s get serious about attainable housing
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

Money has never meant much to me. Guess I was brought up to think that money was a necessity to pay bills and buy groceries.

Voting essential to being part of community
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

I’m old enough to remember a time when adults were the authority on everything. If you were a kid, what you said didn’t really matter, because the adults knew best. As a teenager, this was changing, and authority was being questioned.

Residents deserve answers to their questions
By Rose Ann Miele Boulder City Review

Information is tricky difficult to find. Town hall meetings where the public asks questions or even submit items for discussion to be shared publicly don’t take place. Public comments at meetings are limited to five minutes, and answering a speaker’s question or having a dialogue during this five minutes is not permitted. Put this all together, and you have those who believe, correctly or incorrectly, that something is being hidden.