County purchase of home at park raises concerns

To the editor:

This latest shenanigan is truly unbelievable. I watched the interview on the evening news of Cape Girardeau County Commissioner Joe Gamble explaining this latest boondoggle. County residents have purchased a home and two acres for a quarter of a million dollars. That in itself is enough to upset most of us out in the county without finding out that it was appraised in-house by county employees (no independent appraiser), the resident gets to stay rent free and the taxpayers will pick up the taxes, insurance and repairs. I can understand why county parks superintendent Bruce Watkins didn't want to be interviewed.

Gamble said the reason for this is for right-of-way improvements. When residents out in the county ask for road improvements, we are told that we must give the county 60 feet of right of way to get those improvements and that the county doesn't buy right of way.

First District Commissioner Larry Bock had no problems with paving the existing road in front of his son's home and his own farm, but the rest of us are expected to donate our property if we want asphalt, but that is another matter we can cover later.

I can only hope that they soon get all of their friends and relatives taken care of so that we can get on with the job of improving roads and bridges in the rest of the county.

DOUGLAS FLANNERY

Whitewater, Mo.