Cortez is a dying City. Easter Email to Cortez Gov & Media

By James McGinley April 05, 2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1JBLsyaccM/

STATE OF CORTEZ 4/2026: In the absence of qualified staff support, what I can offer is a back of the napkin estimate: a city with approximately $30 million dollars in annual revenues for everything, needs ADDITIONALLY half a billion dollars and maybe much more to replace it's decades now crumbling water system and roads, and to preventatively remediate and maintain its Rec center, pool, Park, housing stock, ball fields... etc. We are mid to late stage dying City unless we roll up our sleeves and try and improve the outlook. Starting now.

[just sent to current Council people, people on the ballot, and all senior City staff, and media, and retired mayors. my soul woke me up early this morning and then kept me waking and sleeping about 4 to 6 hours, a Harbinger that I was supposed to do something today. smh.]

City council leaders,

STATE OF CORTEZ 4/2026: In the absence of qualified staff support, what I can offer is a back of a napkin estimate: a city with approximately $30 million dollars in annual revenues for everything, needs ADDITIONALLY half a billion dollars and maybe much more to replace it's decades now crumbling water system and roads, and to preventatively remediate and maintain its Rec center, pool, Park, housing stock, ball fields... etc. We are mid to late stage dying City unless we roll up our sleeves and try and improve the outlook. Starting now.

In keeping with John 18:23: if I James speak untruth, tell us the untruth. Otherwise, let's face the truth and make some decisions. By the way, deep down you don't want a citizen to self-censor so that your feelings are not hurt, or that you don't face truths that are uncomfortable, do you? Certainly not. https://biblehub.com/kjv/john/18-23.htm

The state of the city address was given here last month, and for me a citizen it was a profoundly unhelpful state of the city address, it was a state of the budget address, that as long as we spend current revenues without going into debt, things are glorious, a crumbling and dying City notwithstanding. An ongoing complict Cortez Journal and ksjd, notwithstanding.(To we citizens, "the City of Cortez" is the environment for 9,000 fellow citizens in which we and our children live, and the City council, our leaders, tho most certainly not our bosses, our leading most caring, most responsible servants/citizens, to whom we look for the whole truth, not just what's convenient).

Express and implied last month's budget address was a statement that the city is in wonderful shape, that a heroic job has been done by the city manager and city council in recent years to dig the city out of corruption and debt. And I james, believe that heroic important work part is true and that it should be deeply appreciated.

Much corruption gone, debt gone, could be a good thing, unless we continue to rest on our laurels. The end, unless we make of it a beginning.

The city is crumbling to death, like so many Eastern US cities before it. Faced and addressed at their convenience, way way way way too late.

In the absence of qualified staff support, what I can offer is a back of a napkin estimate: a city with approximately $30 million dollars in annual revenues for everything, needs ADDITIONALLY half a billion dollars and maybe much more to replace it's decades now crumbling water system and roads, and to preventatively remediate and maintain its Rec center, pool, Park, housing stock, ball fields... etc.

I suppose the Titanic also, had a balanced budget it was immensely and rightly proud of. Their balanced budget could have been the start, instead it was the end.

In my view our crumbling, dying, city is not the fault of this city council., or city manager, and certainly not of the city staff.

What would be the unforgivable fault of city council is to continue to neglect to give we citizens a full full, complete, comprehensive 3-5 year outlook accounting so we citizens of Cortez can take responsibility for our own future, including if we continue to deny that we citizens, all of us, need to roll up our sleeves and build a future for Cortez as our forefathers did, if our grandchildren are going to have a thriving place to live here, or even ourselves.

And we need it now. With all the appropriate caveats of months more effort required to get accuracy and detail. We need the broad picture. That's how change starts. You all have the courage and Humanity to do that, right? You do. Will you draw on it?

The first step in solving any problem is to squarely face that you have one. Let us see it. Now.

If I have spoken untruth, tell us the truth. Condemn me far and wide if that helps my 9000 fellow residents.

Otherwise, what I've just spoken is the true state of Cortez April 2026. Unless and until you correct it. Thoroughly explained.

What are we the citizens of Cortez going to do about it? Are we going to roll up our sleeves? If not, I'll find something else to do.

James mcginley, 111 South Elm Street, Master Jesus base camp. ( soon to be condemned unless I come up with $9,000 to replace my crumbling sewer system).