Krohn Conservatory is our Washington Monument

At City Hall, they call them "Washington Monuments."

The elephant house at the Cincinnati Zoo was a famous Washington Monument from 1997. So are firehouses, except when a consultant's report gives the political cover to close them. Recreation centers and senior centers make for nice monuments, too.

But City Hall's favorite Washington Monument is Krohn Conservatory.

A "Washington Monument" is a popular program or facility singled out for budget cuts precisely because of its popularity. The term seems to have its origins in the U.S. Park Service official who, testifying before Congress in 1971, said the only way he could cut the budget would be to close the landmark to tourists.

And so it was that a coalition of public employee unions, former mayors, state legislators and others appeared at the Krohn Conservatory Monday for a press conference promising deep service cuts if Issue 9 passes.

"Issue 9 is a major threat to what we do in the city," said Parks Director Willie F. Carden Jr, standing against a backdrop of lush green foliage. "I don't ever want to say to somebody that we have to close a facility -- especially this one that was built in 1933."

The anti-Issue 9 campaign's use of a treasured Cincinnati landmark has anti-tax activists hopping mad.

"He is scaring people, using terror tactics to scare people to vote no on Issue 9," said Christopher P. Finney of the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes. He's threatening a lawsuit against the Park Board for allowing political activity on park property. Finney sued the Cincinnati Board of Education in 2002 for allowing city schools to be used for pro-levy rallies. That lawsuit resulted in the school board paying Finney more than $16,500 in costs and legal fees, and an agreement to sin no more.

"It's illegal to use any city resources to fund political campaigns. It couldn't be more clear. You can say I'm going to sue them over it, because I am," Finney said.

Brooke Hill, a spokeswoman for the anti-Issue 9 campaign who also works for Mayor Charlie Luken, said she received a legal opinion from the city solicitor's office that an educational campaign telling voters about the potential affects of a ballot issue was legal -- as long as the participants were not on city time.

Mayor Charlie Luken stands in front of the Krohn Conservatory in Eden Park in April 2003 to talk about how state budget cuts could result in the closure of city parks. (Photos, from top, by Michael E. Keating, Steven M. Herppich and Ernest Coleman/The Cincinnati Enquirer)