To the Editor: Distrust and legal battles should not be impacting this ballot

I agree with many others who have thoughtfully looked at the opportunities before us. We have worked very hard and invested individual and community resources to bring the Shoreline Historical Museum to the place it is now. The quit claim deed that the Shoreline School District wrote gave us basis for assuring that donations and grants for the Museum building would be used as museum facilities for the region of the original Shoreline district. Trust is a core value; it is key for investment. Were we misled all of these years, and did we in turn mislead others? Was the celebrated bicentennial gift deceptive or conveniently reinterpreted? 

I have talked with people from all over the country at meetings of the National League of Cities. Very few of their towns and cities have a functioning facility such as ours. We need to protect what we have and keep our progress headed in the right direction. I talked with professionals at our National Archives during a special tour of that great building in DC. With maturation comes more and more records and items to process and archive; growth continues. Space is needed to archive and display our heritage.

Museums need more space each year to accommodate the history that is being made each day. Our National Archives is storing miles of history underground. The halls and tunnels behind the scenes hold treasures that the public does not see because there is not the space for display. Choosing between buried treasures or shared culture should not be part of the school bond election. We have the resources in this community to fund both the schools and the museum.

This issue is dividing groups of dedicated citizens who should continue to work together. Distrust and legal battles should not be impacting this ballot. Shoreline deserves better.

Jan Hansen
Shoreline