Chump Change

by
Chuck Connors

It’s a shameful thing when honest citizens who are attempting to uncover corruption in our county are threatened and attempts are made to intimidate them. Certain officials sworn to uphold the law and responsible for the public’s money should know better. This is another aspect of the on-going wrong-doing called Jacksongate that I’ve been talking about for the last few months.

Related to the effects of insane growth are the hundreds of thousands of dollars that seem to have gone missing in the Jackson Development Corporation. I’ll admit that this almost seems like chump change compared to the current shady dealings in various developments here in Jackson County, yet in my opinion that doesn’t forgive the scoundrels who are responsible for the missing public funds in this very public scandal from their standing before the bar of justice.

There are approximately $700,000 in public monies unaccounted for. It’s gone folks—maybe for good. The Drexel property seems to have been purchased with public funds twice! To our knowledge the EDC hasn’t been audited or bonded. Because of what we see in these financial records we believe it’s in the best interest of the citizens of Jackson County for the Economic Development Commission to be dissolved immediately. Mrs. Leatherwood has been able to document in large part the wheeling and dealing going on and believes that the shoddy and haphazard forms of documentation thoroughly justify immediate action by you, the county commissioners. We want clarification and an accounting dollar-for-dollar of the money that the JDC has accessed and spent. This indebtedness of the public treasury has raised many questions about the lack of oversight into these affairs. Somebody’s responsible. Who is going to face the music?

Gentlemen, there is an easier, softer, right way though. Shut down the EDC, order a full audit of the records involving the JDC/EDC financial mess, and return what money that can be salvaged to the public treasury now. The fallout from Jacksongate can be lessened, but only if you Gentlemen take action tonight and begin to restore public confidence in our county government.

Its All About the Water

Water is second only to oxygen as a fundamental that we humans must have. Seemingly here in the mountains of Western North Carolina we have a lot of water. At least we used to. As the Southeast continues in the second year of an extreme drought springs have either already run dry or are running dry and our rivers, such as the Tuckaseigee, aren’t doing very well either. The fact that there are diminishing water supplies available for the people’s needs who live here already drives home the indisputable fact: to you who want to move here from somewhere else, sorry we don’t have the resources to support you. You’ll have to build your third, fourth, or fifth homes elsewhere.

Unfortunately, last year the plans for 200 plus developments snuck in under the wire before the Jackson County subdivision and steep slope moratorium came into effect. I have seen some of the vesting documents involved and questions have been raised in my mind over the legality of some. Those questions are rapidly becoming moot (overall) as, legal or not, Jackson County just does not have the water resources to support these developments.

According to Golf Magazine, the “typical golf course uses 300,000 gallons a day.” That’s 300,000 gallons of water a day to keep green an unnatural carpet so that the too-much-money-not-enough-brains folks can hit little white balls around and then drive little carts to the “19th Hole” to celebrate their handicap. That’ll be three Scotches and water and a Bourbon and branch bartender. Yeah right.

What are you going to do when a four-wheel drive truck can drive across the Tuckaseigee just about anywhere along its length in Jackson County? What are you going to do when your one and only water source, your spring or well dries up? What are you going to do when the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewerage Authority begins mandatory water rationing?

Developers. Its time to face the facts. You’ve sunk all your investor’s money into a dry hole. People. Oppose these developments that will steal our water. It’s all about the water.