To the Editor:
Over 12 acres of prime central eastside parkland sits locked away from use. Expensively locked away.
Since its disconnection from the water system, Mt. Tabor’s Reservoir 6 is maintained solely as a scenic pair of concrete holding ponds. The water in them (when there is water in them at all) goes nowhere. It sits behind a half-mile of fencing (which needs repair) and is untouchable. The buildings cannot be entered, cannot be booked for events, can only be maintained.
The upkeep of these holding ponds, buildings, fencing and the earthen dams is not cheap. Since finding several voids beneath the concrete bottom of the reservoir, a quarter of a million dollars has been budgeted just to begin evaluation of the problem and to initiate repairs.
Sometimes, past decisions should be re-evaluated. Is an expensive water-hungry scenic novelty the best use of over 12 acres of parkland in an ever-denser city?
Jon Kisling
Editor’s note: Letters to the Editor should be less than 300 words and The SE Examiner reserves the right to edit them for length or content.