Currently, the members of the Pocahontas City Council are proposing the idea of a revitalized park with a new indoor swimming pool, an ampitheater, and, overall, a more family-friendly waterpark. Also, they are hoping to add an indoor track around our Community Center, along with concession and restroom facilities for the soccer complex. The overall cost is estimated to to be 6-7 million dollars. The main problem with the addition of these facilities is the cost. The state and federal government will not allow the city to receive very many grants for this type of addition to our community, which means paying for it will be totally dependent on the citizens of the community.
I spoke with the mayor of Pocahontas, Frank Bigger, about the issue concerning the cost for this project. He said that the City Council has discussed several different ways to pay for it, which are all based around increasing taxes. A couple that he mentioned were adding a one cent sales tax to all groceries purchased or removal of the hamburger tax, while increasing the hotel tax. The sales tax may be what henders people from voting for this new project. Taxes are a typical issue people are concerned about because many people want to keep their hard-earned money. However, those same people recognize that they alone cannot build the facilities they want to provide for their children and grandchildren so they struggle with the desire to keep their money and spend it on objects they know would benefit their families or give it to their local governments to better their communities for their families in a more lasting manner.
However, I believe that the new facilities would be a great idea. The sales tax would not deeply hurt the citizens, and it would only be in effect for a seven year period. Ultimately, the new facilites would open new jobs for people, provide more tourism for Pocahontas, and a safer place for all ages to spend time together with their friends and families.
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