Letter: Measure F makes financial sense
To the community,
My wife and I bought a retirement home in Tahoe in 2002, in part because there was a college in South Lake Tahoe. I have been on the LTCC Foundation Board since 2009. I am writing to urge everyone to support Measure F to modernize Lake Tahoe Community College and increase the educational opportunities offered there.
Right now, South Tahoe High School has better labs and facilities than our college does. LTCC’s current campus is 25 years old, and after years of state cutbacks, the maintenance and replacement of roofs, heating, and other physical systems cannot be done without your help. We need to repair, upgrade and modernize the college so we can prepare students for transfer, or support them in earning their associates degrees, and possibly one day we may be able to graduate them with four-year degrees earned right at LTCC.
Community members who participated in LTCC’s long-range planning process last year said they wanted to see our college become a true “destination” college. Tuition at a California community college is about $1,300 per year, while at UC Berkeley it is $12,972 and at Stanford $44,184. A community college is simply the best buy for two years of college.
Many students graduating high school want to be away from home when going to a college. We are a great destination community, which is what drives Heavenly, stores in the Stateline area, restaurants, hotels, sports shops, bike shops, etc. It makes sense to have the college support this in a similar way, but our students will stay here throughout the year, and not just on weekends or vacations. We offer all that Tahoe itself has to offer and LTCC can better attract students from around the state and beyond if it’s modernized, has the latest technology, has up-to-date classrooms and labs, and looks as appealing as the rest of Tahoe does.
As the college expands thanks to Measure F, so do significant jobs for our community – faculty, administrators, and facility maintenance and servicing, and support businesses we use in the community – injecting significant ongoing money into our economy.
In addition, Measure F will also directly help our community in that:
• The college plans on spending $107 million in construction from Measure F including matching funds from the state. All Measure F funds will be used for construction projects – none for the college administration or faculty salaries.
• Fifty percent of students graduating South Tahoe High School who go on to pursue higher education attend LTCC. It is essential to keep the college up to date so that our young people can lower their costs in the first two years of higher education.
• Under the new California rules, locals can take a course once, but with the College’s Connect Education program, the college will continue to increase the number of courses for the community, and these courses can be repeated.
• A vibrant college also increases the prestige and desirability of our community for both professional careers and the retirement community. My wife and I would not have retired here without the college.
Measure F will cost $25 per $100,000 in assessed valuation. For the average assessed value of a house in South Lake Tahoe, the annual cost will be under $70 per year, or around $5.90 per month. Not a bad return on a small investment for all the benefits to our community.
Please join me in voting yes on Measure F this November.
Bob Cliff, LTCC Foundation board member
Why do I want to spend money to build a Taj Mahal that is being marketed to out of towners?
What are these community courses being proposed?
50% of students is what number?
Are you also pledging that freed up funds by the passage of Prop. F will not go to salaries?
Just a few thoughts.
Legal-
You are so right. My thoughts are that this is being built because of several peoples egos, and an attempt top up their salaries immediately before retirement, a practice so common it is sickening.
I am a college supporter…both my children went there before transferring to 4 year schools.
We are being asked to vote for this Bond issue, partly because there is a slim chance some 4 year program may fall on their heads. But the majors will be so limited, if someone isn’t looking for a public safety degree or law enforcement, they will still need to go elsewhere.
We ARE BEING SOLD A BILL OF GOODS.
Very long on concepts, rhetoric and dreams, and very short on facts and details.
Already a significant number of faculty cannot afford to live in Tahoe, and live in Nevada.
There is no reason why a 25 year old school should need the kind of maintenance they are talking about if it had been built right in the first place, and had been maintained even minimally.
To blame mismanagement of facilities on the lack of state grants is right next to dishonest in my opinion. For instance, until very recently (if at all), there was no professionally trained facilities manager.
There may be a time, after our economy has sorted itself out when a bond issue like this would make sense, but not now.
I would like to see a list of those community people who said they wanted a destination college. I am sure it was not long on middle class working people.
Vote NO on measure F.
hey what about the Culinary program that failed?
Chef’s for the Casinos was that the story back then?
Lies and Bull****
Somebody’s likely looking for their legacy. . .
A small community college is not a bad thing. Let’s keep it that way.
i agree: let’s keep this small community college just that…
I support F. I don’t think its bill of goods, don’t think its about spiking salaries, don’t think its all lies. I do think its about investing in a 25 year old asset. The cost to me is minimal $75 a year. I am willing to make the bet the college and the community will be better off for it.
Slapshot – I’m with you on this one. The grand conspiracy theories I keep hearing in response to every single change in town just has to stop.
Education is worth investing in, period. The way the money for this bond measure is going to be used, as well as the rest of the budget, is publicly available information. The plans are there, they are well thought out, and the current faculty & administration has done every single thing they said they would do to improve LTCC.
Who benefits the most from access to higher education? Middle class and lower working families. Community colleges are such an asset and truly the best bang for your buck when it comes to the high cost of a college education these days. So many jobs that didn’t require at least some college coursework in past decades are impossible to attain without it now, including and especially fields like nursing and public safety.
This is such an important measure to support. If this community wants to grow in a healthy way, supporting our Community College, for such a small fee and major benefit should be obvious.
More taxes. NO WAY – Vote NO
I urgre others to vote no on this piece of pork.
Homeowners, your taxes will go up. Renters, your rent will go up.
Let these people do it the right way and get funding from the state if it is really a truly needed program which in my analysis is not.
This community investment IMHO is a no brainier. Invest in education and recreation both are good for the community.
I usually vote no on new taxes.However, I feel this is the best best investment for our community. It will help support the low and middle class, and bring more sports teams here with another new field and dorms. The 4 year program will be Fire Science. The emergency training facility will help improve all emergency situations in and around Northern Ca and NV. I am voting YES!
Pine tree there are no Dorms in this measure and I couldn’t find a new field either.