LETTER: Elected officials need to listen to voters

To the Editor:

Citizens of St. Croix County, are you as concerned as I am about democracy here in our area? As Hudson Star-Observer Editor Doug Stohlberg wrote recently, it is time to “respect the wishes of the voting public.”

We elect supervisors to represent us on the county board.

Former supervisor, Steve Hermsen, stated that a “referendum question is a tool used when a governing body can’t determine the wishes of the public.”

After two referenda (2008 and 2012) determined that 66 percent of the public want to support the St. Croix County Nursing Home, there are still those using their power instead of your vote to close this safety net for our vulnerable adults.

They are now presenting big numbers such as $1 million + (already approved in 2008) to scare other board members into voting to close. This, fellow citizens, amounts to less than half penny per person per day.

What a half penny per day means for the vulnerable needing skilled nursing care is that when the screening lists at private nursing homes turn them away because these people cannot afford the expensive surroundings, we can provide a safety net for our neighbors. These people won’t need to pay for glass atriums or wine and cheese parties for their families. They will need skilled nursing care to ease their way when their health starts to fail.

History here in our area shows that ignoring votes by the people in referendum has not turned out well. Are the original Hudson Dog Track (an ongoing eyesore) and library (an underfunded acquisition) referenda examples?

The people, it turns out, are more knowledgeable than our representatives give us credit for.

Some won’t listen to our voices and ignore our votes. The one vote they will not be able to ignore is at the next election. See you there.

Shirley A. Matzek

Hudson

Tags: letters to the editor, opinion