Lost: Common sense
To the editor:
I raised my daughter without public assistance. Times were tough, but the one thing that went out the window when times were hardest were luxuries. I put a roof over my daughter’s head first, food in her stomach and clothes on her back. I didn’t have extras for myself. My daughter learned that she might not always have what she “wanted” but I would make sure and work my hardest to give her what she “needed.”
Some of you are wondering why I am baring my soul like this. The reason being is that we have a Town Manager and City Council that have forgotten the basics. If you compare this town to a child and the town officials to parents and follow my story along it should be parallel.
Our town, as many towns around the state, is hitting some very troubling financial times, but the town officials are not using any common sense. They are OK’ing and spending money that the town doesn’t have right now but are crying hard times. Hard times that they have created for themselves and ultimately for the town. Let me give you some examples.
The PAYT program. This program was the brainchild of Mr. Bennett. It’s not working Jim. Other towns have seen the idiocy of this venture and have pulled out altogether. The town is unhappy with it but still the town officials press on. Did you forget that not everyone in town can afford $8.75 or more to throw their trash away? What does this do, causes trash in the roadways, the water streams and general chaos. Not keeping your child clean here folks.
We have many other pressing concerns in our small town as well. We need decent roads, decent housing and decent care for people who are having their programs cut. What do the town officials do? They OK the construction of a new rec center. Yes a new rec center is so much more important than making sure our citizens have safe roadways, a way to get food, and a safe place to live. Not providing security here at all.
Lastly the parallel with my story above and present city conditions: I did not have extras for myself. How can the town manager in all good conscience, knowing the condition the town’s finances are in exact a salary of 96K per year and then have the audacity to demand a deputy town manager on top of that? Do you know what 96K per year comes down to? $1,846.15 per week! Who in this town makes that except a doctor or lawyer. 96K would help fix a great deal of roadways, help with some social programs that are going away.
I would hide my head in shame knowing that I am making that kind of money and then cutting programs and services to make sure that the budget balances. To really drive the knife in if he loses his job he gets 100K in severance. The same luxurious arrangement that he had when he got let go from Lewiston.
Voters in this town need to seriously take a look at what is going on and make some extreme decisions. We as citizens have the right to remove city council members if they are not working in the best interest of this town and I believe that they haven’t been for a very long time.
Just some food for thought.
Shelly Rogers
Presque Isle
