My name is Paulette Bumbalough and I am a retired educator in Monterey County and an involved member of our community. Most of my life I resided in metropolitan areas, but by choice I have become a small-town girl.
Having lived in King City for over 15 years, I feel honored to call King City my home. Because it is an amazing place, it was my privilege to serve on a school board, hospital board and planning commission. Those experiences gave me insight into what makes a small-town work.
King City is a generous place where folks are active in community events and they are supportive of schools and families. I’ve heard out-of-towners and new residents say they’ve never seen such a giving community and they are happy to be here.
Having said that, I have a concern that if we do not pass the half-cent sales tax increase with Measure P on the November ballot, we will be in dire straits in a few years. Our current sales tax measure will sunset and we will be losing $2.4 million in our City of King budget.
Lack of funds will impact police protection. We will not be able to replace aging equipment for our volunteer fire department and our street paving will suffer. I’ve been here long enough to see our city in debt with gang issues and unfunded deferred maintenance. I don’t want to go back to that scenario. I feel safe in my town.
Having a safe, productive community impacts our future. Potential businesses who bring jobs look at such things when making a decision to move here.
Please vote “yes” on Measure P to keep King City moving forward.
Paulette Bumbalough
King City
