It’s not about ‘us’ or ‘them
To the editor:
When it comes to politicians, a promise made is not necessarily a promise kept – especially when the promise is to be kept many years after it is made. A case in point is the promise made to the city employees regarding compensation, benefits, etc. Even when that promise is contractual, there is still uncertainty about the final payout when the time comes, i.e. – how fiscally stable will the city remain? And the politician keeping the promise most likely will not be the one who made it.
My father retired as a division chief with Hialeah Fire Department (FL) many years ago. He was fortunate – the city did not break the promises to him until the last four months of his life, which had little impact on his financial status. My sister is a recent retiree with the Hialeah Police Department. The promises made to her are already in flux, and at risk – while the promises made to new city hires are not nearly as generous as hers.
As a registered voter in Cape Coral, it doesn’t matter if you are a city employee, a full-time resident, a six month or more resident, or a tenant resident – we still all need to be voting for council members and a mayor who take the long view and work to keep the city fiscally sound, now and for the future.
No more spending sprees when property values begin to rise in an unusual manner – bank it, and wait for the correction to come. Don’t leave it for a future council to try and pick up the pieces and repair the damage because sometimes it is a judge who repairs the damage. And no one wins under that scenario.
Bonnie Zink
Cape Coral