Ambulance service important in Antioch

The following letter is my personal opinion and is in no way meant to reflect the position of Antioch Township or my position as an elected official. Public bodies or elected officials cannot use their public office to influence the decision of the voting public as it relates to a public question on April 7.

As a 30-year resident of Antioch, let me say everyone agrees this community needs to have reliable ambulance service. Nobody wants their property taxes to go up, and in my opinion, it was an unfortunate series of events that brought us to having to make this difficult decision.

After thoughtful contemplation, I have come to the conclusion that this is not the issue to take a stand on. The question facing voters on April 7 is whether they are willing to pay an additional $82 per $100,000 of assessed valuation on their annual property tax bill for the purpose of providing reliable ambulance service.

I hate having to pay this additional tax, but may the alternative be even worse? The most important thing to me is the well-being of my family and the protection of my property. It occurred to me that in 2015, we are on the verge of an economic recovery and although I may disagree with certain events regarding this issue, if we are to attract new investment into our community and support property values, I have decided to vote yes on the ambulance funding question.

I love this community and respect everyone's choice to vote how they want on this important issue, so let me just say that no matter how you feel about it, please go to the polls and make your voice heard by voting.

Peter Grant

Antioch