In case you missed it the Mason County Historical Society  will be asking you to vote on raising the millage to support their effort "to help preserve the county's history."

They want to raise an additional $2.5 million dollars to pay for list of dubious improvements the majority of which have nothing to do with  preserving the county's past.

  Expanded parking at White Pine Village, $200,00

  New entrance from South Lakeshore Drive to the village, $150,000

  Enhanced security and noice suppression fencing at the village, $150,000

New exhibits at the village, including themes of Native American village, steam locomotive and train station, military compound with quonset hut, and public ground transportation to and from the village, $250,000.

It seems that these have almost nothing to do with preserving the county's past and everything to do with providing thea shuttle service for fudgies between the Maritime Museum and White Pine Village.

  The completion of several maritime museum exhibits including 1940 Armistice Day Storm, U.S. Coast Guard duty station, maritime heritage trail exhibits, $600,000.

While these have to do with our county's past isn't it a bit premature to be asking for more funding for the Maritime Museum before it even opens.  Let's wait until it is open to the public and see how it plays out before burdening the Mason County taxpayers with mo' fees. Personally this sounds like a slush fund to cover the daily operational costs for the new museum.

There is over half of  the mileage that has nothing to do with with our county's past.

  New research library and welcome center, $900,000.

I have no first hand  knowledge with what improvements might be needed to a research center, I know I would like to see better access online. But a welcome center??? Let's split this $900,00 up into just the research library and leave off the welcome center.

  ADA compliant restroom facilities, walkways, and building accessibility improvements throughout the village, $150,000.

Here is the one necessary improvement to White Pine Village.  $150,000   Couldn't this best be handled by a fundraiser? a grant? or raising the admission cost amortized over 5 years to cover the expense?  $30,000 a year for 5 years wouldn't take much belt tightening.

Vote No on this pipe dream for mo' money.

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It is not even well thought out by the Mason County Historical Society.

Why piss away $900,000 on a research library and welcome center that will be closed a majority of the year. Wouldn't a better location for the library be old downtown bank where the sports museum is to be located? 

Couldn't it then be operated year around?

Would combining the two, the research library and sports museum save money?

Wouldn't the history of the County be better preserved and protected in a former bank vault?

Did they even consider this?

Thanks shinblind, for the link on David Petersen's letter to the editor. He IS a great local historian, and also has written several books on our area, very photographical too. And I agree, no transparency for documents both he and X requested are denied? Wth kind of group seeking public funds does that? This is all becoming more silly by the day, and month. I know there were several locals that donated very heavily toward the Maritime Museum. One was the Birtwhistle's and several other local industrialists. Now look at the situation. Even MCHS Board members won't contribute a measely $1,000, and then resign.

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