Letter To The Editor: Oskaloosa doesn’t look near as nice as it did those many years ago

Editors Note: The views and opinions expressed in this editorial are not necessarily the views or opinions of Oskaloosa News.

Nine months ago my wife and I had the opportunity to move back “home” to Oskaloosa after being away the past thirty plus years. One of the first things we noticed was that Oskaloosa doesn’t look near as nice as it did those many years ago. What I refer to as the “front door” of our community, Market and A Ave, are somewhat embarrassing in places.

I joined a group, Mahaska Community Development Group, which is a group of local business people that are interested in improving the Oskaloosa Community. I have been impressed with this very passionate group of business people who are spending their free time, and in many cases money, working on issues for the betterment of those that live in Oskaloosa. One of these issues is that of the housing situation in Oskaloosa. The one issue that can be addressed immediately is that of increasing the standards within our community. Our city employees need a uniform set of codes that can be applied consistently and uniformly across the community. This improvement in standards is the first step in us building a better looking Oskaloosa that we can be proud to show off to those that come to visit us.

I am writing because of the disappointment I felt after attending the city council meeting on 4-20-15. I went to the meeting to speak in favor of city employees that had issued a citation warning a citizen that they could not park in the grass per an existing city ordinance. I was disappointed that two of the council members were more interested in chastising the city employees, including the city manager, for spending the time on such an issue as this. (Without going into great detail you can witness yourself by watching the broadcast of the meeting on the local TV MCG channel 12). With this display it is apparent to me why our community has moved backwards in appearance over the past thirty years.

What was more disturbing were the comments these same two council members made around a presentation and proposal that was made titled, “Walk, Run, Ride Oskaloosa: Oskaloosa’s Active Transportation Plan”. In a nutshell, this proposal is to provide improvements in bike paths with major improvements in the existing sidewalks, as well as additions of sidewalks where none currently exist. This was a $6.2 million proposal, understanding that this resolution was not to approve any funds but to approve the plan and begin the discussion to move forward in making Oskaloosa a better place to live for all of us. One of the two council members stated something to the effect of “There have been bicycles in Oskaloosa since the 1890’s without the need for this”. I don’t believe there were any type of automobiles back then! The other council member stated, “This isn’t New York, Chicago or Minneapolis”. Based on these comments, us folks here in Oskaloosa shouldn’t be concerned with the fact we live in the 21st century and we certainly shouldn’t expect to have the quality of life they have in the big city with bike paths and decent sidewalks.

I unexpectedly had several folks come up to me after the meeting and give me their names and email addresses wanting to join in this campaign to improve the standards in our community. If you would like to join the discussion, email me at steveburnettlovesosky@gmail.com.

Steve Burnett