Saturday, July 16, 2011

Whatever happened to the $27 million water treatment plant?

This council, the gang of four [three if Wise recuses himself due to conflicted interest by wanting to move to a Town Center location from his present due-to-be taken for road use store], has a responsibility. It needs to revisit something swept under the rug, the water crisis and answers of years past - tapping river water, etc.

Before the gang-of-four [three] gives free money away by a second lien loan of millions tied up for years, via a bond-and-lend scheme for the sole benefit of Indianians Flaherty and Collins (and their thinly capatilized LLC - and Darren wanting a commission); give us who are living in Ramsey now an answer first.

This council must revisit the question of whether river water will be needed and an expensive treatment plant will have to be bonded into existence.

With TIF delaying taxation, the phantom tax base bonanza that's been propagandized ad neauseum, will not be there if that water plant thing ever actually needs to be built.

Besides throwing money profligately at Flaherty and Collins, drinking water is a "need" that should preempt glassed-in skyway planned train stop "wants." (To put the thing in terms that we hope the GOP contingent running Ramsey now presumably can comprehend and respond to.)

Or was that river-water-and-treatment-plant all a smoke-screen scam and a lie?

There is a story. It needs attention. And it needs it now. Before Flaherty-Collins giveaways.

The water treatment thing of past years either was a bogus hoax or a true concern, one or the other, and this council would be irresponsible in not saying one way or another which and why, AND doing that honest step before doling Ben Dover the Ramsey Taxpayer's money to the rental-ramp-wrap housing schemers from out of town.

Is the water issue still pressing and needful of future big-time spending, and if so, would wisdom be to not waste cash now on that failed Town Center money pit?

What's up? What's the story? Will taxpayers get forced into funding both the attempted Lazarus efforts at Town Center AND a water plant. That's heavy. It would be raw if it happened that way. After all, the Lazarus Town Center thing is wholly discretionary, as well as fundamentally unjustifiable as a legitimate government activity in conservative times.