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Click Here 46 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, February 26, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend January 18, 2004 Ron Pylkki, 53, fleet supervisor for a White City automotive service center, believes the Legislature has turned to new taxes, not creative reductions, to solve the budget crisis. He will vote �no� on Measure 30. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell — In a White City garage, talk of an overhaul By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune Amid the smell of engine oil and the sound of rain on the White City auto shop roof, the Building Bridges community group ponders the prospect of new taxes. Perched on folding chairs, six men and two women attend to director Mark Darris, who says the group grew out of two years of lunchtime discussions about politicians, public workers and tax dollars. Most of the folks here are employed by Darris, the 41-year-old manager of Technical Automotive, a high-tech service center. All but one are firmly committed to voting down Ballot Measure 30, the referendum on an $800 million Legislative tax increase. But Darris says the reasons they’re against the measure aren’t necessarily obvious. "The first thing we want to say is, it’s not about the money," says Darris. "It’s not about the cost, it’s about the product we’re receiving." Advertisement Murmurs of approval run through the small group, which includes fleet supervisor Ron Pylkki, 53, and fleet technician Mike Snider, 44. They say they’re upset that the state Legislature decided that new taxes, not creative reductions, were the solution to the state’s revenue problem. "The people in control have not done anything to help or to change things," Pylkki says. Members of the group say they’re frustrated with public sector employees, particularly teachers and school administrators. Lavish PERS benefits, summer and winter holidays and salaries and benefits that far exceed what the average auto technician makes irk these workers. "There were so many years when teachers got raises and we didn’t get raises and now they’re asking me to pay more?" Snider says. Recent reports of local school administrators giving themselves double-digit raises while pleading poverty didn’t sit well, either. Kevin Burnett, a 38-year-old Southern Oregon University student, says it’s hard for him to reconcile higher tuition and laid-off professors with the specter of a $23.5 million library renovation project looming over SOU. "I understand that it’s a different fund, but isn’t that just bureaucracy?" he says. "It’s difficult when we see these ambiguities and throwing money at it hasn’t helped." While they value education and say that teachers and other educators work hard, members of the workers’ group believe the existing government structure violates a sense of shared sacrifice. "If you removed the teachers from Measure 30, we’d vote for it," Darris says. He’d like to see more creativity in tapping community energy to assist education, rather than seeking higher taxes. Darris says he has repeatedly offered his auto shop as a training center for local schools. So far, he has received no response. Only one member of the group plans to vote in favor of Measure 30. Carol Snider, 41, Mike’s wife, says the consequences of not passing it will mean higher tuition for their college-age son and reduced health care for their mentally ill daughter. "We’re going to cancel each other," Carol Snider says of the couple’s votes. But Mike Snider says it’s not the money, it’s the principle that’s important to him. "It’s probably going to cost me a whole lot more money to vote against it, but I am," he said. — JoNel Aleccia, [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times