Coming to a small town near you.

While I do not agree with some parts of the letter, it summarizes what is happening in rural MN.

School levies that fail the majority of the time...
Lower property values and high taxes...
Poor job market...

Lots of issues I spoke of while we were campaigning. Our locally elected officials will continue to ignore the issues at hand.

"The voters have spoken, now they must be punished."

To the Editor:

It's no surprise to me that there is declining enrollment in the Glencoe-Silver Lake School District. Who on earth would want to come to or can afford to live in this town?

Had I done my research, I certainly would never have moved to Glencoe.I have been stabbed in the back by a neighbor who feigned friendship and so called "concerned citizens." Only one person who lived on my street bothered to introduce herself and welcome me to Glencoe.

I have met new neighbors who have told me that residents on the street I live "know a lot about me." How could that be? Did any of them bother to introduce themselves or bother to find out what I was about? I had never met any of them.I

f the citizens, city, the council and the police department think that they can mind my business better than I can, I say have at it!

When I moved to Glencoe two years ago, I was looking forward to becoming a part of a nice, small-town community. Joke's on me!

As I stated previously, whoever coined the phrase "small-town nice" has never tried to belong to the community of Glencoe.

With the housing market being what it is today, selling my house and moving on would be next to impossible. When the market turns, I am out of here. (Without naming names, you know who you are. Does that make you happy?)

Glencoe has nothing to offer - high utility rates, next to zero amenities, high taxes and a high market value on new and existing housing.

Very few can afford to work in the City of Glencoe. I am in middle management; if I were to work in Glencoe it would require me to take a $5 to $8 per hour drop in pay. Instead I drive a 65 mile round trip every day.

And you speak of another referendum in 2007? I agree with public education and support it 100 percent, but when will enough be enough? Instead of raising taxes of people who are just barely eking out a living, try challenging the City Council to come up with and actually implement a plan to lure young families to the city of Glencoe. Try challenging the council to lure businesses to Glencoe to create jobs where people can actually afford to work in the town they live in.

I would challenge the residents and "boys' club" members to welcome newcomers to town instead of ostracizing, pointing fingers, speculating and talking behind their backs.

I would challenge city and county officials, as well as established business managers and owners, to do an analysis and figure out how to make wages in Glencoe match its cost of living.

Instead of raising taxes again and again, I would suggest that the Council invest in some marketing strategies to lure people and business to Glencoe. Bringing in young families, and treating them like they've been in Glencoe all their lives, would certainly increase enrollment in the GSL school district.

Try that for a change of pace instead of continuously trying referendums.

Andrea Bortness
Glencoe