Protect our
property values
Let it be known I am one of the last who want to see our taxes raised. I don't want to spend a penny on anything unnecessary, but I also know value when I see it.
I know we need another school in Bella Vista -- if not today, in a few years.
Don't fall for the anti-school crowd that says all we just need are more school buses.
That would not help the problem facing our children, who have to travel so many miles just to get to school.
Put yourselves in the shoes of a young couple wanting to move to one of the nicest parts of northwest Arkansas, Bella Vista, but don't want a 6-year-old riding a school bus for an hour or more. Would you be looking at homes on that side of town? Or would you choose the side that has an elementary school?
Now pretend you need to sell your home, perfectly updated in a wonderful neighborhood, but situated in a part of town where the kids spend an hour or more on a bus they have to catch when it is barely light outside. Do you think the perfect buyer is going to buy your home if they have young children? How many think builders are going to build spec houses on the side of town with no schools, or are they going to continue to build on the side with a school?
It is true there aren't a lot of children on Bella Vista's west side now. But don't you think more home-seekers would consider moving to the Gravette School District side if there was a school? The often-used saying is, "Build it and they will come."
Maybe you really don't care about what I've said because you don't want a lot of kids in your neighborhood. Well, think of it this way: By the time the school is built, you might be ready to sell your house. Maybe you intend on staying in your home until you leave this earth, but what about your heirs? Wouldn't it be nice to leave them a piece of property that is easy to sell and not held back by the school situation?
How about those of you who really are holding out for no new taxes. Would it be better to see a slight increase in your tax bill now, or would you rather wait until the need for a new school is inevitable and the cost of building it has doubled?
I can't think of a single reason not to support a new school. We are not talking about doubling your property taxes, we are talking about perhaps $135 a year for the average homeowner -- in some cases less. Aren't our kids, our community and our property values worth 37 cents a day?
Last, but not least, to the families living in Gravette, this will eventually help you as well.
As more families move to the west side of Bella Vista, your school district will benefit with more tax dollars.
Nita McKelvey
Bella Vista
Editorial on 08/27/2014