[Vision2020] Unstable, Doomed Model Cannot Protect Our Quality of Life

joekc at adelphia.net joekc at adelphia.net
Thu Mar 2 13:37:36 PST 2006


Jeff,

I respect your expertise in economics. But I majored in mathematics as an undergraduate and I have a huge problem with the numbers-in-a-box reasoning that you use below.

You seem to think that folks will keep on coming to Moscow whether or not there are houses for them to purchase. I bet that if we were to stop building houses as of this moment, eventually the folks would stop coming. The numbers you note are not predestined. We have some control over growth in spite of those statistics.

Furthermore, you keep sticking to the same old false dilemma: either we have growth without reflection or we have no growth at all. Of course, Moscow and Latah County are growing. Of course, we need to find ways to deal with that growth. Among the MCA board, to use one example, are plenty of folks who work in real estate, own private businesses, and are otherwise aware of the growth considerations to which you speak. The MCA, for instance, is not anti-growth. We are just anti-growth-at-any-cost-and-without-reflection-on-the-consequences. There is a difference.

Much of the points that you make are persuasive only if you reject the sincerity of the comments above. This makes any dialogue between us very difficult. I believe that what you say is what you believe. I ask for the same level of consideration from you. There are no hidden agendas.

--
Joe Campbell

---- Jeff Harkins <jeffh at moscow.com> wrote: 

=============
The hysteria and hyperbole (and/or lack of 
knowledge) that some folks use to advance their 
arguments is quite interesting - and indicative 
of how folks would carry out their 
responsibilities as a decision maker for the 
local area.  Consider the quote from Antone 
Holmquist below (highlighled in italics) and 
apparently published in the Lewiston Morning Tribune a few days ago.

Basic mathematics implies a result quite 
different from the conclusion reached by Mr. 
Holmquist.  According to the Moscow Chamber of 
Commerce, the population demographics for Latah County and Moscow are:

Population Growth

                 City            County
1980            16,513          28,749
1990            18,422          31,314
1995            20,555          33,050
1998            21,500          32,051
2000            21,291          34,935
2005            21,700          35,218

The average annual growth rate for Moscow is .7%
The average annual growth rate for Latah is .6%

If we were fortunate enough to grow by 1% for the 
next 100 years, the population for the City and the County would be:

City            58,695
County  95,258

If we use the historical growth rate of .7% and 
.6%, our population in 100 years would be:

City            43,592
County  64,056

It just seems irresponsible to argue that if our 
population doubles in the next 100 years, that we 
are doomed here. The fact is, if we maintain our 
current growth rate, we are faced with the 
challenge of finding homes for about 350 folks 
(say about 150 families) each year for the 
foreseeable future.  Of course, about a third of 
those would presumably settle in the rural towns 
of the County.  Some are arguing that finding 
homes for about 100 or so families each year in Moscow is "too much" growth?

I hope those attending the Moscow New Cities 
forum will keep these numbers in mind.  As a 
benchmark for comparison, you might consider the 
State of Rhode Island.  RI enjoys a land area of 
1,045 sq miles (they also have about 500 sq miles 
in water).  The population is about 
1,048,319.  If you have visited Rhode Island, you 
know that they have managed to preserve their 
growth, their green spaces, and their rural area quite nicely.

Latah County has a land area of approx. 1,077 square miles.

The panic, fear, disdain for growth, loathe for 
local individual and business economic prosperity 
and general hysterics by some "progressives " is 
simply unwarranted.  The facts do not support 
their histrionics.  It does make one wonder exactly what the agenda is?

Now, as I close, please read again the next 
editorial appended to this email (by Ms. 
McGovern) - note the bold italicized 
statement.  if you have lived on the Palouse as 
long as I have, you will recall that the same 
arguments were made about the current WalMart 
store. Does the fear-based argument stand up?

My challenge to you - just as the residents of 
Latah County welcomed those of us that were not 
born here, to live and raise our families here, 
and share in the rich bounty offered by the 
Palouse area, so it is incumbent upon us to 
welcome those 150 to 200 families each year to 
live with us - with the same freedoms we 
enjoyed.  IMHO, that is a heritage worth preserving.

At 12:00 PM 2/25/2006, you wrote:
> >From this weekend's (February 26-26, 2006) Daily News with a special vote of
>thanks to Antone Holmquist and Eileen McGovern -
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Unsustainable, Doomed Model
>
>B.J. Swanson has come under fire for her opinion on the proposed Wal-Mart
>Supercenter and some are calling for her head.  I say bully for her.  As a
>well-respected local banker, her learned opinion should be worth a great
>deal.
>
>Some local economists have trumpeted the economic mantra of "consumer
>choice" and bemoan Moscow's 1 percent annual growth.
>
>Basic mathematics, however, reveals that a 1 percent annual growth in Moscow
>would certainly fill every nook and cranny from Moscow Mountain to Paradise
>Ridge and beyond within an average lifetime and such growth is just frankly
>unsustainable worldwide.
>
>Last year I embarked on a road trip from Fort Worth, Texas to northern
>Arkansas.  This is the heart and soul of Wal-Mart and other big-box stores.
>An awful lot of these towns have virtually no business district and the
>towns look shriveled up.  I drove into Bill Clinton's birthplace and found
>nearly a ghost town.
>
>Wal-Mart and the other huge chains have sucked the soul from these towns.
>As a young college student studying economics I suspected the basic economic
>premise of growth, growth that was crammed down my throat was not quite
>right and 35 years later I know it is an unsustainable and doomed model.
>
>Antone G. Holmquist
>Moscow
>
>------------------------
>
>Protect Our Quality of Life
>
>Moscow, Idaho, Heart of the Arts, home of the Farmers Market - nestled
>cozily in the undulating Palouse.  Moscow is a community unique in its
>ability to combine small-town familiarity and warmth with the enriching,
>energizing force of the University of Idaho.  This has been Moscow's
>strength for many years and now it is under attack.
>
>Wal-Mart, the largest corporation in the world, and persistent violator of
>human rights both locally and globally, wants to gouge out a chunk of the
>Palouse and replace it with a sprawling, concrete Goliath of commerce - the
>Wal-Mart Supercenter.
>
>The super center is likely to alter the character of Moscow to something
>more gray and generic.  It will initiate urban sprawl, threaten both
>downtown businesses and the potential for sustainable economic growth, and
>have a negative impact on the local environment - all of which makes Moscow
>a less attractive place to live.
>
>Whether or not this assault on our quality of life occurs has a lot to do
>with the City Council's answer to the question: How to zone the area
>Wal-Mart wants to invade.  If it is zoned a mixed-use area, Moscow will be
>protected from the corporate onslaught.
>
>Please contact your City Council members and let them know how important it
>is to this community that they zone that area mixed-use in order to protect
>our quality of life.
>
>Eileen McGovern
>Moscow
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Thank you so very, very much Antone and Eileen for expressing a true sense
>of community.
>
>Take care, Moscow.
>
>Tom Hansen
>Moscow, Idaho
>
>**************************************************************
>
>"A bad cause will ever be supported by bad means and bad men."
>
>- Thomas Paine (English Writer, 1737-1809)
>
>**************************************************************
>
>
>
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