I am sure some people are wondering about my latest vote on the Forks Township amphitheater. I always believed it was important for our community to have a common gathering place where we can enjoy family activities. In the case of Forks Township, it will be our amphitheater. Additionally, the amphitheater will help build a bridge between the community and our local business. In my opinion, the debate was centered on the design of the amphitheater, not whether we should built the amphitheater.
For the past two years, Forks Township has debated various designs and held several public meetings to review the proposed designs. The cost of the last design was about $360,000 and allot of people worked hard to reduce the cost of the present amphitheater design to about $257,000. This is about $100,000 reduction in cost.
In the past month, it has become abundantly clear we would never agree on a design. In my opinion, the recreation funds paid by developers are used to provide recreational activities for the entire community. My responsibility as an elected official is to represent the entire community and I take each vote seriously.
After my no vote, I did additional research and spoke to various residents. I came to the conclusion that I should focus my decision whether we should built the amphitheater, not the design of the building.
Yes, I did change my vote. I decided was time to vote yes and built the amphitheater for the betterment of our community.
