If it will take an outrageous tax hike of 15 cents over 3years – and likely more – just to build a new School Mahal, never mind other city-wide demands for revenue, then I agree with the gist of this letter. We we have reached the point where we can no longer afford to maintain an independent school system. And why keep trying, when an affiliation with Arlington or Fairfax schools would bring all the benefits Mr. Boeddeker describes. Or if the relatively small percentage of city families with children prefer, let’s privatize the system and let those who benefit from it pay for it in the form of tuition and fees. Maintenance of our small school system has long since become unfairly burdensome to those whose city tax burdens, on top of Federal and state taxe extractions, act as a hardship. It is no answer, as some argue, that we all get the benefit of higher home values because of our schools. It is no benefit at all if you can’t afford to pay these usurious tax rates and are driven out of your home and the city.