Confession: I never expected to find myself writing this column.
As a lifelong Tucson resident and certified public accountant, I’m fundamentally wary of tax increases.
I believe in balanced budgets, thoughtful planning and public-private partnerships. More than 8 years ago, I accepted this position as the president of the Reid Park Zoological Society because its board of community and business leaders shared these foundational principles. I’ve spent years working for one of the finest Tucson nonprofit organizations, ensuring we operated within our means, grew financial reserves and were stable during economic volatility.
Given my personal and professional background, I did not take lightly the possibility of asking voters — my neighbors and friends in the community I grew up in — to approve a sales-tax increase. Our board was equally pensive.
But here’s the reality:
The zoo was built more than 50 years ago. In some areas, its basic infrastructure — water, sewer, electricity — was built around World War II. Some of our exhibits were built over 30 years ago, to animal-welfare standards that are no longer considered acceptable.
Our tigers need a larger habitat. Our flamingos need clean water by way of a new pond. Our patrons need more shade.
We’re very proud of our wonderful facility and its incredible staff who care for our treasured animals. But we have some catching up to do.
We began assessing exactly how much needed to be done five years ago.
We whittled our “wish list” down to only the projects that were 1) Critical to the ongoing operation of the zoo and 2) A direct benefit to the community. We carefully projected the costs of these projects, and begin to evaluate potential sources of funding.
We spoke with city officials, who understandably struggled to prioritize flamingos over firefighters when divvying up the tight general-fund budget.
We met with our private-sector donors, who generously support our programs, exhibits and animals. They, understandably, weren’t nearly as excited about sponsoring a new sewer line.
We explored local, state and national grants, which can and will create incremental progress, but still leave us well short of what must be done.
And in 2015, we were one component of the Pima County bond election. Our measure — the parks and recreation bond — failed.
We came to the conclusion that our best option — most argue our only option — was to turn to the community for a short-term sales tax to secure the long-term future of our zoo.
So here we are, humbly asking each Tucson resident for $0.60 per month by voting yes on both Propositions 202 and 203.
This money — your money — will be spent wisely and frugally. We will improve the quality of life for our animals, increase educational opportunities for our children and make our great zoo even greater for you.
This dedicated revenue will be protected by law, ensuring future city councils couldn’t repurpose it for other projects.
We take your investment very seriously. We manage our finances very effectively. We understand our extraordinary responsibility to care for our animals and teach our children why conservation is so important.
A famous environmentalist once said: “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we are taught.”
Reid Park Zoo is the first piece of that puzzle. We teach. Please help us continue to teach future generations about this beautiful planet we live on, and the diverse animals who call it home.
