Letters to the Editor - Yakima Citizens Speak Out!

Sunday, June 22, 2008 - Yakima Herald Republic - "Our best interest in mind?

To the editor -- "All commissioner decisions are made after extensive consideration of all county constituents, not just a select few." -- Mike Leita (Letters, May 13)

Considering the financial ramifications of the Douglas Auto Wrecking Yard relocation, "all county constituents" must mean those of us who pay taxes and "select few" refers to the individuals who are profiting from this massive wealth redistribution program.

Facts, from county documents procured via public disclosure requests and the legal complaint filed by Jamie Carmody's office:

Taxpayers will pay at least $800,000 in relocation costs, none of which actually goes to restore the river.

The county paid $192,000 in land and miscellaneous costs for a relocation site appraised at $70,800.

The county will trade the new site for the current one, which is valued at $30,400. The "owners" of the current site did not pay property taxes from 1955 until 2006, when the county created a new taxable parcel to facilitate this transaction. Schreiner Title Co. would not provide insurance on the current site because it was unable to determine true ownership.

The county plans to eventually cede the current site to the Yakama Nation.

The county is paying the operator to build himself a new facility with taxpayer dollars and is dangling a $50,000 bonus for early completion.

Please visit www.citizensprotectingresources.org and join the effort.

Michael W. Libbee
Wapato

Monday, June 2, 2008 - Yakima Herald Republic - "Must be a better place for junkyard"

To the editor -- Here we go again! The county commissioners insisting on doing something that costs the taxpayers lots of their hard-earned money and makes no sense. We will be paying an outrageous amount to move a wrecking yard from an island in the Yakima River. Where are Mike Leita and his fellow commissioners insisting on moving this large wrecking yard? To a piece of land right next to the river at the gateway to our beautiful wine country where tourists come to enjoy the ambiance of our fruitful valley, not the ambiance of a wrecking yard.

Turning the wrecking yard into a Tuscan theme is amusing. Who will water and care for the grapevines that will be planted around the fence? As any farmer knows, plants must be correctly cared for to grow. What will our Tuscan theme look like in five years when Mike Leita, is, hopefully, no longer a county commissioner?

This brings back memories of another set of county commissioners that built an expensive and not economically sound county jail despite taxpayer protests.

Let's do the correct thing and move the wrecking yard to a place where it will not harm the environment or hurt our economy.

Susan F. Eichler-Reis
Yakima

Monday, May 19, 2008 - Yakima Herald-Republic - "Wrecking yard move"

To the editor -- Do you really care about all this Douglas Wrecking Yard stuff? Well, maybe you do. Even if you don't live in the Donald/Wapato area, it still impacts you. The county is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money on this project. Money that won't be available for other things you might consider more important. You might also wonder why the county is funding the upgrade for a private business. I happen to think this is wrong and that's why I have joined with others who are concerned to hold county officials accountable. Want to know more? Check out our website .. citizensprotectingresources.org

Craig Fisher
Tieton

Saturday, May 3rd - Yakima Herald-Republic - "A New Debacle?"

To the editor - If you could go back in time and meet with the two previous Yakima County commissioners and one who is still serving concerning the jail site disaster, what would you say? I believe that would be more than obvious. What if you had the same opportunity, right now, with that same board member, plus the two new ones, concerning relocating a wrecking yard? But this time you would know 10 times more facts.

Please take the time and go to www.citizensprotectingresources.org to find out for yourself how Yakima County's taxpayers are about to go through something far worse than the jail debacle. Your county commissioners have decided to gift close to $700,000 of your monies to relocate a business that for decades had not paid a dime in property taxes until 2006, according to the assessor's office, and now will be rewarded. I also think you may be amazed at how our public officials go about doing business to us and not for us.

Please note all concerned parties want this wrecking yard off the river, we just think it's a good idea not to put it back on the same aquifer that runs back into the same river they are taking it from.

Kristine H. Russi
Yakima

Saturday, May 2nd - Selah News and Toppenish Review Independent

To the editor,

Do you think Yakima County should remove a wrecking yard that is located on an island in the Yakima River? I do. Do you think Yakima County should violate state law and take tax dollars needed for other priorities to move it? I don't. Do you think Yakima County should move the wrecking yard to a site that is environmentally, aesthetically, and economically appropriate? I do.

Would you like to see the documentation on how Yakima County is spending $108,000 of state DOE funds that went for county staff salaries and expenses, nearly $200,000 to obtain the relocation site appraised at about $70,000, $425,000 committed to building the facility, the unknown cost of the “mitigating” fence along the Yakima Valley Highway, unidentified costs to clean up the existing site, and any other costs thus far unknown to the taxpaying public.

My computations come to nearly $800,000...not a single dime of which actually goes to restore the river. Check it out on our website .... CitizensProtectingResources.org ..... and then maybe you will want to contact your county officials and let them know what you think about how they are spending your tax dollars. Just maybe.

Craig Fisher
Tieton, WA

Editors note: Although the Douglas Wrecking yard is located in Wapato, this letter was sent to the SI. The county commissioners’ decision to move the Douglas Wrecking yard to an area that could have direct economic and environmental impact on business owners and residents of east Wapato, deserves county-wide attention.