Open letter to Des Moines City Council

I, too, support retaining the boatlift launch at the marina. You say it looses $20-30,000 a year. These funds are just a drop in the bucket compared to the fees the city pays to consultants and for feasibility studies. You say that the income from the marina boat moorage must make up the difference. Oh, these poor boat owners/moorage renters. You seem to have a problem with taxing the rich to supplement the non-rich. No other governments have a problem with this.

Must all of the city's facilities be self-supporting? Does the Activity/Senior Center support itself? Does the Beach Park support itself? No and No! I guess we will soon be seeing admission fees for these areas of community support, over and above the voluntary donation fees that the seniors now pay at the center.

One of your members has recently angrily shouted in council chambers that there are only about 300 Des Moines residents that use the lift-launch. Well, a large number of the users of the center and the park are also non-residents. There is also talk about raising the "lift" rates this summer. Well, how about $45 for residents and $60 or more for non-residents? The state has no problem with this kind of split-fee schedule when it comes to fishing and hunting licenses. The non-residents pay more.

At the marina today, the non-resident boat moorage renters/lessees pay the same fees as the resident users. The non-residents really get a discount because they pay no city taxes yet they use all of the marina facilities.

I have lived in the city of Des Moines continually since 1967. I am 70 years old, I retired in 2002, but I decided to run a part-time consulting business in order to purchase a small saltwater fishing boat where I could spend time fishing in my "winter years." Des Moines is a "Waterland" City and the boat lift is/was just the ticket for someone my age. I am too old to use the boat ramp in Redondo. I cannot afford to rent a moorage slip and even if I could, I do not have the "time" to wait on the waiting list.

Therefore, since the lift launch will be shut down, I have cancelled my boat plans thanks to all of you "wise" people. I think I will instead purchase a SUV. I have never had one, but I will make sure it is a "green" one. I saw one the other day that I liked. It was a 2005 Lexus and it was metallic emerald green.

Roger C. Hayden

Des Moines