Save Youth Theatre Northwest | Letter
Published 9:00 am Thursday, April 7, 2016
Many of you may have heard of a group called Concerned Citizens for Mercer Island Parks. They are circulating a petition that, on the surface, sounds great — it’s all about preserving parkland on Mercer Island. However, buried in the petition is a specific clause designed to push Youth Theatre Northwest off of Mercer Island (see section 19.20.040 of the petition).
My daughter and I encountered one of their representatives recently at the Mercer Island Half Marathon expo. The representative started with the superficially plausible arguments about saving parks. However, when I pressed about “why now?” the facade quickly fell and the true intent came through.
Among the many deceptions in the campaign, Concerned Citizens would have you believe that the city is giving up a sizable portion of Mercerdale Park for MICA. Not true — not even close. The parkland in question is a small section directly next to the recycling center. It is nowhere near the large grassy area we all know and love. I posted some photos of the area in question last fall at savemercerdalepark.wordpress.com/2015/08/05/mercerdale-park.
The Concerned Citizens group will also have you believe that the city (and residents) are funding MICA’s construction. Again, not true. MICA was formed because Youth Theatre Northwest needed a new home. It is being funded 100 percent by donations. It will literally be a gift to the Mercer Island community.
If you are at all inclined to listen to the Concerned Citizens for Mercer Island Parks, please take the time to do your homework. Youth Theatre Northwest has been a valuable asset to this island community for over 30 years — you owe it to them to do the research. Here is what I would ask you to do before signing the petition:
1) Visit the abandoned recycling center and ask “do I really want to preserve this?”
2) Visit the small part of the park that will be used and ask “do I really want to preserve this?”
3) Visit the MICA office and ask the tough questions that Concerned Citizens are using to scare you into signing the petition (is the city on the hook? How will parking work? Who else supports this?, etc.)
4) Finally, look at the plans that are posted at www.mercerislandarts.org and imagine attending a concert, a play or hearing an author’s reading of a children’s book and then stopping by the Farmers Market when it’s over and grabbing a bite to eat at a local restaurant with your fellow Islanders.
In short, Concerned Citizens is nothing but a thinly-veiled attempt to push Youth Theatre Northwest off of Mercer Island. To sign their petition is to ask Youth Theatre Northwest to leave. Don’t do it.
Steve, Julie, Jack and Mackenzie Hamilton
Mercer Island
