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Letters to the Editor
(Posted on July 29, 2010)
Frustrated by West Jeff mayor's conduct
It appears the West Jefferson mayor promised the moon to the ones who wanted to develop land for a grocery store on property now outside of the village limits, without bothering to go through the legal process of letting council make the decisions. Evidently, instead of attending council meetings, he now converses via e-mail.
In the July 11 edition of The Madison Messenger, he is quoted as saying, “Where some on council have been getting these outrages figures of $2 million-plus is beyond me.” Then in the very next breath he says, “It very well could turn out to be that much.” Is it outrageous or not Is he talking out of both sides of his mouth at once?
Then he raised the question about whether or not council needed to take the action they did on the annexation on July 6. “It is the opinion of some that the annexation has already taken effect,” he said. Note, the property owners petitioned the county to release the land for annexation, the village sent a memo stating what services would be provided, the commissioners held a hearing and released the land.
Now, for the land to be annexed it has to be accepted by ordinance by council. When council acted on this, it was denied by a vote of 5-2. This means that the annexation did not take place. The mayor probably would have realized this if he had bothered to attend the council meeting.
Lest I be accused of having a personal vendetta against the mayor because I lost the election, let me say here and now, with the events happening in my life, it was the best thing that could have happened.
It just frustrates me that after spending 25 years in village government, giving honest administration, caring for the welfare of our employees and seeing capital improvements made, that I see it all undermined.
Charlie M. Miller
West Jefferson
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Vote "yes" for Madison-Plains
I am writing this letter to urge the voters in Madison-Plains to vote YES Aug. 3. The truth of the matter is that the residents of Madison-Plains Local School District are residents of Madison-Plains Local School District. There is no West, East, etc. One district, one community.
Truth. That seems to be a difficult concept for the leaders of the Tri-Elementary Preservation Group or whatever they are calling themselves now. The fact is the people that lead that group are either not informed or are outright misrepresenting the truth. Here's the truth. Prior to the May election, the vote-no group told residents that they supported new elementary schools; they just disagreed with the location of the proposed school. Now, they are opposed to new elementary schools and want to keep the current elementary buildings open. I don't know about you, but I do not want to send my children to buildings with asbestos, mold, lead and whatever other toxins are in those buildings. Then, there are safety issues. No public address system in an elementary, classrooms in closets, etc. It's ridiculous and time to move on.
Truth. New signs have popped up in Mount Sterling with claims that there will be a 10+ mill operating levy on the November ballot. There will be an operating levy, but it is a RENEWAL. This means that you are already paying that tax. It is not about an increase of anything. If you vote "yes" on both the bond issue Aug. 3 and vote "yes" in November on the RENEWAL, your taxes will increase from the bond issue only. This tactic to influence votes is dirty politics at best.
Truth. The leaders of the opposition group claim that "several businesses" have stated that they would leave Mount Sterling if the schools moved to the Linson Road campus. This is a direct quote from Sue Shilling at a board meeting held at Midway Elementary after the May election. When asked which businesses, she said to ask Mayor Neff. So, I sent Mayor Charlie Neff a public records request asking him that very question. He sent me the information that I requested and he spoke of a "casual conversation" with a person that stated their prospective business would leave. One conversation, one business. Not plural, but singular. That is the truth.
Here is another truth and simply the most important one. The residents in this community need to come together. I have wonderful friends in Mount Sterling. There are good people there, and it appears there are people there who are trying to bring big-city politics into this district. Stop them. Show them you are above being told what to do. Show them you are above being scared into voting "no." Show them that you want to do the right thing for the children in this district. Show them that you want the buildings where students are sent to be safe. Show them that you take decisions like this seriously and you are an educated voter. Before taking their word for it, check the facts for yourselves. I'm sure you are thinking to yourself that I just believe what Boone Hall and the Board of Education tell me to believe. Nope. I look into things. I visit the schools. I ask questions. I submit public records requests. I encourage you to do the same. The buildings are unsafe and outdated. The students deserve better.
Vote YES Aug. 3.
Alyce Baker
South Solon
Readers' Comments on Letters:
Well said! I applaud Alyce Baker and hope people follow her suggestions. Too many people believe everything they hear. Check it out, find out, think for yourself. Support our kids in Madison-Plains - ALL of them. --- Paula Hann
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