Boise City Council member explains why she voted against buying mobile home park

I hear constantly from constituents that the state of politics today makes them weary. The public wants less carping, more courage, less name-calling, more civil discourse, less judgment and more curiosity.

Unfortunately, Bob Kustra did the opposite in his column published in the Idaho Statesman on April 3. He called the Idaho Republican Legislature bogus thinkers and even invoked the beloved Wizard of Oz’s Tin Man by saying I needed a heart due to my recent vote on a Boise City Council.

It’s unfortunate Bob Kustra didn’t pick up the phone and give me a call. It’s the Idaho way.

I’ll illustrate the Idaho way and set a tone of explanation and context. First, I am the only new member of the Boise City Council. It’s no secret that I’m a Republican and proud to be so. I was overwhelmingly voted in by all kinds of voters. There was no R or D behind my name on the ballot. My constituents in West Boise wanted a new voice at Boise City Hall with a fresh perspective. Voters wanted someone strong, who listened, who wasn’t afraid to ask tough questions publicly and had the courage to be the lone no vote on certain issues. That’s exactly who I am.

The new district system in Boise has the potential to break monolithic thinking and strengthen democracy. When there is dissent, it always causes more critical thinking about issues and helps those in the majority justify their actions.

I was the lone voice of dissent on a recent 2-acre purchase paid with $3.25 million of taxpayer dollars for Boise to own and operate a trailer park. It was because of me the item wasn’t buried in a consent agenda. It deserved transparency, an open debate, and public discourse. It’s odd that a single “no” vote has now rocked the establishment that’s used to group think.

It’s no secret to anyone who has lived in the Treasure Valley for more than five years that the vast majority of the middle class couldn’t afford to move here now. Our housing market has skyrocketed while relative wages are stagnant.

But as a steward of Boise taxpayers, is it Boise’s responsibility to solve this on its own on the taxpayer’s dime? No. If prices are to drop it’s economics 101 — supply and demand. We need more supply and less demand. Buying a trailer park won’t fix the issue, and it will place new demands and liability on a municipality that already has many additional needs because of growth. I don’t believe Boise should be in the affordable housing business, no matter how much the city owns and operates right now. Those responsibilities are better served by private industry. However, private industry didn’t get the opportunity to be a solution, because the city stepped in. There was no plan for this property other than to “save” it from the market.

Like many parents, I want my children to be able to stay in the Treasure Valley and raise their own families. It breaks my heart that with current housing prices coupled with more job opportunities out of state, young families will be forced to leave a place they love. But buying a trailer park and the city owning and operating housing is not the long-term solution nor will it fix an issue that is driven by supply and demand. That’s not being a Tin Man; it’s being a taxpayer advocate.