Letter to the Editor: Support for the Driftless Area Education and Visitor Center

To the Editor:
The Driftless Area Education and Visitor Center is a valuable addition to the overall quality of life in Allamakee  County. While we can talk about the additional revenues this facility will bring to the county through increased retail, gas and hotel/motel taxes, the true benefit of having the Center is the education and historic preservation efforts that the Center will offer to the area’s children, all other citizens of the county, and visitors from near and far.  It is a forward looking project that will teach all of us about the value and beauty of our unique place in the world - the driftless area of the upper Mississippi River.
The Conservation Foundation expects to build the Driftless Center with minimal tax payer money. For this board to take on the daunting process of seeking out, applying for and coordinating the myriad requirements of federal, state and private grants and to then coordinate the complex task of weaving direct grants, matching money grants and private contributions in a timely manner to meet tight deadlines is not only ambitious but audacious. When was the last time you heard of a public project of this magnitude that did not involve direct government funding?
We should be thanking the Conservation Foundation Board for taking on this project on our behalf. So when I read about a group of citizens complaining about the Education Center and implying that our county government is misappropriating funds for the Center, I find it disingenuous at best.
The $158,000 they claim the supervisors have diverted to the building of the Center is actually part of the county’s five-year $20 million road improvements budget which is over and above the road maintenance budget.  This $158,000 is less than one percent of the entire road improvement budget and defines the actual mandate of the budget - road improvement. This money is to pay for paving the county access road to the Education Center, just as the County would and has improved access roads to other major developments that benefit the county overall.
I expect my tax dollars to be wisely spent to improve the quality of life of all citizens of Allamakee County and I trust this board of supervisors, Larry Schellhammer, Dennis Koenig and Dan Byrnes, to efficiently, effectively, and fairly manage our tax dollars. But don’t take my word for it, Standard and Poors has awarded Allamakee County with an AA- rating, which is a remarkable endorsement of our supervisors’ fiscal management.  This rating is already saving Allamakee County thousands of dollars in the Public Safety Center bond requirements.
If you have questions about the Driftless Area Education and Visitors Center, I urge you to go to the source, the Allamakee County Conservation Foundation, for your answers, and I hope you will support the Center with your contribution.
 

Gary Kerndt,
Lansing