Disclaimer: I don’t live in Concord, I don’t play golf, and, although I love to swim, my preference is for ponds or lakes. Concord City Council just voted to increase spending for Beaver Meadow Golf Course, while leaving funding for the city’s pools unchanged. Using the numbers provided in the article, 1,071.4 people enjoy the golf course per week, and 2,352.9 people use the pools each week when they are open. It’s interesting that the pools are open for 8.5 weeks per year, and the golf course for 28 weeks.
Two things stand out here. Each week that both are open, more than twice as many people use the pools than the golf course. The golf course is open for a bit over 3 times as many weeks per summer as the pools. Will playing golf save your life? How about learning to swim? What demographics use each of these recreational facilities? (What demographics are represented on the City Council?) Even if the cost to play golf had stayed at $45, many families would find it unaffordable to bring a couple of kids for an afternoon. The pools are free to Concord residents, and a season pass can be obtained for non-residents for $125. (Less than the cost of 3 afternoons of golf!) To me, a democracy attempts to serve all of the people, providing as much as is possible to as many as possible. How sad that the Concord City Council falls so far short of that mark.
Teresa Wyman
Canterbury