We are writing to urge all voters to support passage of Blaine County's bond measure on Feb. 6 to fund a new Public Safety Facility.
Blaine County's current jail, dispatch center and administrative offices were designed and built in 1972 and are woefully inadequate in size and design for a safe work environment for county employees as well as city law enforcement officers involved in booking alleged criminals. The proposed Public Safety Facility also includes a consolidated 911 dispatch center, which will ensure better coordination and faster service in life threatening situations. For the city of Ketchum, it also would eliminate the need for the city's own dispatch center.
Blaine County proposes to repay most of the proposed $10.5 million in debt from existing county funds. Therefore, the financial impact on local residents will be minimal, less than 2 cents per $1,000 property valuation.
There will never be a better time to get this done. Our City Councils voted unanimously to support the Public Safety Facility bond measure and, therefore, we jointly urge residents of our cities to vote "yes" on Tuesday, Feb. 6.
Susan McBryant
Jon Thorson
Randy Hall
Rick Baird
John Anderson
The mayors of Hailey, Sun Valley, Ketchum, Carey and Bellevue, respectively