We are all interested in the Quality of life in the Tehachapi Valleys. We want a safe environment for our children & grandchildren; we want educational & recreational facilities and programs. Growth is inevitable, but quality growth is planned. A quality community takes creative leadership, intelligent planning, and effective implementation. Presently, sorry to say, I think we are short in all three areas, but it's not too late. I think we at the fork in the road, which will help determine the quality of Tehachapi's future growth and the quality of life in our valley. The location and design of our City Hall will greatly influence Tehachapi's future image. Let me share some thoughts. At present I think that Capital Hills is my preferred location. I feel it has many advantages especially when compared to the Curry/Valley (shopping center) location. Curry/Valley (shopping center) location: * A "City Hall" in a shopping mall has no class. It's typical of "small town" thinking. * Be too small and has no space for expansion. * Create unacceptable traffic and parking problems, which will cost a fortune to correct later. * Addresses or meets only one of our needs a "city hall". Capital Hills location would: * Create a fresh/new city area while retaining the unique original historic Tehachapic sites, which can be enhanced. * Have adequate space for the City Hall, Civic Center, landscaping, parking, other appropriate community facilities and supporting businesses. (Set desired image or city theme) * Have excellent access potential to both the freeway and the city, which the developer would be required to provide. * Have new and adequate infrastructure, which the developer would be required to provide (some is already in place). * Bring in much needed transit revenue without impacting our way of life. * Require "thinking outside-the-box" to implement. It will need creative planning, financing and management. Some of our present leaders may not be up to it. The "good-old-boy" style of management will not get the job done. Some also carry too much baggage in nepotism and cronyism history, which will always be a point of contention. My preference to Capital Hill over Curry/Valley is based on my experience in Thousand Oaks. They had very similar decisions to make (i.e. historic Thousand Oaks development, new city hall, civic/cultural center, new regional mall vs existing mall upgrade, freeway transit business, etc. WHAT SAY YOU?