Notice: Undefined index: HTTP_REFERER in /home/stparch/public_html/headmid_temp_main.php on line 4394
Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
June 14, 2012     Shelton Mason County Journal
PAGE 5     (5 of 20 available)        PREVIOUS     NEXT      Jumbo Image    Save To Scrapbook    Set Notifiers    PDF    JPG
 
PAGE 5     (5 of 20 available)        PREVIOUS     NEXT      Jumbo Image    Save To Scrapbook    Set Notifiers    PDF    JPG
June 14, 2012
 
Newspaper Archive of Shelton Mason County Journal produced by SmallTownPapers, Inc.
Website © 2025. All content copyrighted. Copyright Information
Terms Of Use | Privacy Policy | Request Content Removal | About / FAQ | Get Acrobat Reader




Letters ........................................................................................ Continued from page A-4 unwise Editor, the Journal. Since my wife and I relo- cated to Mason County, we have been active in the Port of Shelton and its intended directions. It must be stated that our efforts and those of a large group of the commu- nity were not supportive of the port decisions but were, in fact, opposed to the port directions. Primarily, these areas included the port's de- cisions and actions regarding ADAGE LLC, the potential closure of the community Fairgrounds and continued heavy funding of the EDC. During the past six to seven years the port ap- peared to "forget" that they are a municipal corporation, basically owned and heavily supported by the taxpayers/ citizens. They also appeared to "forget" that the port's re- sponsibility should be directly tied to the needs, wishes and demands of the taxpayers. Instead, the community/ citizens were forced to spend thousands of dollars in a legal battle with the port and AD- AGE. The port spent thou- sands of "taxpayer dollars" to fight against our community. Can it be that the current elected and/or hired port leadership is realizing that without community/citizen support the Port of Shelton will continue to wither and eventually die? Unfortu- nately, this would be a huge loss to this community at large and we should not al- low this to happen! Therefore. the issue is: Do the taxpayers/citizens of the port district as well as all Mason County citizens want the continuation of a "Ma- son County Fairgrounds"? I believe that we do if specific and binding actions are taken by the port. The port must demonstrate and prove to the public that they deserve our continued support. The re- establishment of community support can be initiated by listening to and adopting the following guidelines in any future fairground plan. The name of the fair must remain "Mason County Fair- grounds" in keeping its 100 year community history and investment alive. This com- munity enterprise is not a "Sanderson Field Fair" - it is the taxpayers fair. The port must change its policies to reflect a true intent to move in a direction of community betterment -- the community's idea of '`betterment," not that of the port. Without regard for the community/citizens/taxpay- ers, the port has proceeded to: a) authorize a water line to nowhere at heavy cost to the taxpayers and without citizen support; b) push the development of ADAGE LLC without community support and at great cost to the taxpayers; c) authorize, and continue to authorize, the excessive expenditure of taxpayer dollars for an attor- ney who, in many cases, has fought the taxpayer in court or hearings. Formal responses to "Fair- grounds Future Use Plan", as it appeared in the June 6 port press release: Current and future FAA aviation safety requirements must be finalized before any long-term decisions on the fu- ture fairgrounds can be made. Lease terms need to en- sure a fair (to be determined how?) return on public and/ or private enterprise use of said Fairgrounds. The Port of Shelton has stated that: "The fair- grounds property is one of the least desirable loca, tions for future aviation development at Sanderson Field" (Port Press Release, June 6). A five-year lease guarantee is not valid un- less item (a) (FAA issue) is resolved. Therefore, any . future aviation development stipulations must be omitted from any future Fairground commitments and/or nego- tiations. A relocation guarantee would be valid only if 1) FAA issues identified in (a) are dealt with; 2) Relocation would include infrastruc- ture improvements such as water, sewer, power and broadband communications. However, it needs to be de- termined who will burden these costs - will it be the taxpayer; 3)"The expected cost of building movement" to a new location or to build replacements will "be borne by whatever eventuality might make fairgrounds dis- placement necessary~' (Port press release. June 6). It needs to be determined if the FAA will supply funds or grants to burden the cost since it appears most likely that such relocation will be as a direct result of FAA reg- ulations or requirements. Since the port has previ- ously stated that the current fairground is the "least desir- able" area, only unresolved FAA issues will remain a concern and they make it impossible to offer any guar- antee. So, maybe, just maybe, there is some hope to be had. Stay active. Stay informed. Dick and Jo Curtis Shelton Taking a look at privitization Editor, the Journal Mention the privatization of liquor, or the privatization of the post office, or schools, or libraries and the reaction varies from why not to a re- sounding no way and every- thing in between. The debate goes on both locally and at • the national level as propos- als to transfer federal, state or local government services, assets and/or functions to the pri;cate sector are considered. The National League of Women Voters decided to study the stated goals and perceived impact of priva- tization and in late fall of 2011, encouraged local and state leagues to participate. They defined the scope of the project, prepared back- ground papers and developed consensus questions. Our local League of Wom- en Voters Mason County for~ned a committee to study the background information and in addition accessed a blog designed to reach across the nation linking articles and insights on this complex topic. Each of our seven com- mittee members researched a subject. We chose the privati- zation of prisons, education, solid waste, libraries, ports, parks and social services. Through case studies, we found good and bad ex- amples of how privatizing government services can affect communities, and will continue to report our find- ings this coming year. As an organization dedicated to open government, transpar- ency, accountability, and preservation of the common good, our objective is to iden- tify those policies that serve and protect the public. Our committee agreed that the essential core gov- ernment functions should ex- ist to provide for the safety, security and general welfare of citizens. There have been efforts with mixed results over the past 30 years to privatize services such as so- cial security, Medicare, stu- dent loans, military services, interstate highways, trans- portation, mental health, public health, court services, roads and bridges, railroads, utilities and water along with the afore-mentioned topics of discussion. By evaluating and tak- ing measure of the impact of privatization, it is our inten- tion to inform our league members and our communi- ties, thereby helping to guide in shaping the policies and parameters in the privatiza- tion process. Amy Davis League of Women Voters Mason County Shelton Schafer Park open for business Editor, the Journal Memorial Day we went camping at Schafer Park. I believe this is one of the pret- tiest state parks in our state. Unfortunately, the park was only half filled, which is very unusual. A few months ago there were articles in differ- ent newspapers saying that Schafer was about to be dosed this year and the ranger, Ar- nold Hampton, reassigned. This did not happen, but the information was out there, and there were no other ar- ticles contradicting the first ones. So I want everyone to know -- Schafer State Park is open for business, as beautiful as always, and our wonderful rangex is still there too. So ffwe want to keep this park open, we need to go camping there or picnic at the "day use" side. I would hate to lose this park. It is on the histori- cal register and has a history after being gifted to the state by Schafer Brothers Logging. The beautiful Satsop River rims along the campground for swimming, fishing, rafting or just wading. Support our parks and come camping. Arline Goldsby Shelton Editor, the Journal For those of you that may not know me, my name is Willie Pierce and I am a life- long resident of Hoodsport. Marrying my high school sweetheart and raising three children, I have witnessed our town of Hoodsport change and grow. Starting at the PUD in 1974, I began work- ing as a groundman later becoming a lineman in 1981. Over the next two decades, while working in both the water and electric depart- ments, I eventually worked my way up and became the superintendent of Mason County PUD 1, retiring in 2004. I have seen every angle of PUD 1 from customer to superintendent. Having at- tended many board meetings and understanding the inner workings of PUD 1, I•feel that I am the candidate for the job. With the recent economy, every dime must be spent wisely, and as your commis- sioner I will strive to achieve this goal. I will work with my fellow PUD 1 commissioners to ensure our policies greatly reflect the interests of our community. Thank you for voting. William H. Pierce Hoosport Sheldon's attendance in question Editor, the Journal This letter is to express my concern over the re-elec- tion bid of Sen. Tim Sheldon as Mason County Commis- sioner in District 2. It is a matter of public record that Sen. Sheldon's attendance at Mason County Commis- sion meetings over the past six years indicates a habit of missing meetings or leaving meetings early. This is no doubt due to his work as a Senator in Olym- pia. which is precisely the point of this letter. As a Senator, Mr. Shel- don's time and energy are needed in O}ympia so that he can focus on serving his constituents statewide. Be- cause he is serving as both a Mason County Commis- sioner, and as Senator, he is sh0rt-changing the citizens of Mason County who elected him to represent their con- cerns in District 2. His fre- quent absences mean that he is not available to meet with his constituents in Mason County, and that his input is lacking during discussions. votes, and other important county business. Not only does it seem a bit unethical to hold two elected positions concurrently, even if legal, why does Senator Sheldon feel that it's necessary? There are manyother qualified can- didates who desire to serve this county as commissioner, and who can devote their full attention to the job. I feel it is in District 2's best interest to carefully consider ~the other candidates running in their district, and to not cast their vote for Senator Sheldon simply because his name is well known. It's time to give someone new a chance whose service will not result in a conflict of interest between state and county matters. Goldsborough Creek Apartments is accepting wait list applications for seniors ages 62 and better. HUD subsidized, controlled access, garden setting, minutes from downtown shopping. Non-Smoking Property. 23 1-Br. and one 2-Br. 303 S 7th St., (306) 426-3903 W E RE HERE? www.ppgnw.org WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE SELLING MORE OF THIS WEEK? We can he # you wnen you ca (360] 426-4412 to advertise qhclh~a-.Ma~{~l~ Cou~l lle /a lj www.masoncounty.com Virginia G. Schnabel Shelton have fishing 427-9099 Supplies! Skokomish Indian Tribal Enterprises (S.I.T.E.) @ 19390 North U.S. Hwy. I01 Skokomish Nation, WA.98584 At the intersection of Hwy. I01 & Hwy, 106 minutes north of Shelton on the Skokomish Indian Reservation Shrimp Bait Here Now 3-piece Chicken & Jo Jo's $3.99 Coors & Coors ~allS Bud & BudLight Madb 1 ' $ SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: NORTHFORK O. ino Smok.uo Now G,ea, He ,oes BAR & GRILL Serious Risks To Your Health Shelton-Mason County Journal- Thursday, June 14, 2012 - Page A-5