Editor,

I listened at last night’s [March 21] Board of Supervisors meeting and learned about the deplorable conditions at Hardy Elementary School. Where, among other things, there is not reliable plumbing for the students and staff to have access to clean sanitary functioning restrooms; and [there are] other structural disrepair conditions. To their credit, despite these conditions the staff, parents, and young students who spoke have great positive attitudes.

This brings up, why are we GIVING AWAY to the State $200,000-plus in land value and another $500,000 to try and woo them to build a prison that a large number of taxpayers do not want and will have minimal return on investment?

Dick Holland stated: “Bad investment.” This is coming from a successful bank president, who not only has to evaluate his bank’s investments but [also] other businesses who come to his bank seeking funds to invest in their business.

My opening statement at last night’s meeting was, “One of the primary responsibilities of the Board and County Administrator is to be good stewards of the taxpayers’ money that they are entrusted with.”

Based on the County’s poor financial decision in the past on the land purchase, and to try to get that monkey off their back by GIVING it to the State along with an additional $500,000 (truly good money after bad) — and this in the face of the deplorable conditions at Hardy Elementary — this tells me the Board of Supervisors and County Administrator are not being good stewards of our tax dollars.

The money being given to the State could be put to much better use to keep our children safe and on track in school so they go on to be successful and not end up in a facility like the one being proposed.

The statement last night by the Board Chairman to WAVY 10 News reporter: “I still have not seen a strong reason to oppose it,” tells me once again he and others do not have open minds and are not truly listening. And like last month’s meeting this was just a show to placate people, and in the future the Board and County Administrator can say “We held public hearings and listened to the people.”

They are not truly listening when their minds are made up before they come in the door, and are merely going through the motions to satisfy a legal technicality for a check in the box to cover themselves in the future.

Glen Little

Zuni