Huber Ridge Area

to start i would like to commend the homeowners association for keeping us up to date with the newsletter. what a fine piece of information, very informative and educational. i must say i look forward to reading this every time i see it.

but this issue i became pissed off after reading the lead off story. we have 3 candidates running for trustee, and a story was published with questions for all 3 to awnser. mr ward who is our current trustee for maybe 20+ years is stating we need to clean up the aging infrastrusture. who is he kidding? who's watch did this fall apart under? why is he concerned now? i will tell you because it is election time thats why! the township has been decaying under his watch for years! why is it now his concern? why was it not a concern of his 4 years ago when the decaying process really started to accellerate? this is a joke!!!! we need someone who is ready to step up to the plate and do the job that is expected from the taxpayers. not a hillbilly who wants to supplement their income and retirement.

i will see you all at the meet and greet this october, i need awnsers and we need a real candidate. i want to see who is real or not before i go to the polls. i suggest the rest of us township residents do the same.

By furious

Agree

You said it all! The problem is I'm not sure the other two have any motivation for change/clean up either.

I think they all want an income supplement with great insurance.

All they need is someone to loosen the purse strings and hire people who are willing to work to clean things up.

How About You?

Being a trustee should be a high calling and one that represents and protects the people's interest. In my view, a trustee is one who serves the community, anticipates community needs, works for the peace and prosperity of the community, communicates community concerns, goes to bat for the community, improves the community - just to name a few.

I do not believe that all the men are looking to supplement their income or retirement. I know that Jim Welch wanted to be a trustee in order to effect positive change LONG before he knew the correct salary. I cannot speak for the other two.

Jim has worked hard as association president (for which he and all us receive NO compensation). He spent countless hours working on the water issue. Who else can claim that? Because of his efforts, we realized a lesser increase. Had he done nothing, we would have had a twenty-one percent increase instead of the nine percent increase - and we would not have had the summer/winter rates. Which one of the candidates for the four-year term can claim that success? None.

My question to both who have posted is sincere and meant to be respectful one - are you currently caring for the community? I hope so, because no one can do it alone. And the more I know, the more I realize that our community needs change, leadership, and accountability. We ALL need to be involved in some way.

A budget cannot be ignored

Mr./Ms. P'd Off

The roads, sidewalks, gutters, drain-drops, signage, Township buildings, parks and toys are all exposed to nature's elements. Traffic, freezing, thawing and road salt adversely affect the roads, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, driveways and drain-drops respectively. The rest is affected by exposure in general. Because of this, we, the Board of Trustees, have an annual maintenance schedule which is administered by our Township Road Superintendent. We have addressed the infrastructure in this manner as long as I have been on the Board.

Unfortunately, we do not have all the funds we need to meet every problem that exists. The fire and police budgets together amounts to approximately 3.0 million dollars out of a total budget fewer than 5 million dollars. That gives us less than 2 million dollars to meet all other expenses. We must work within the budget submitted by Blendon's Chief Financial Officer (CFO). This means that repairs must be prioritized. We utilize co-op purchasing/contracting in order to get the maximum amount of repair for the dollar. We may even go over the budgeted amount if there are safety concerns and it is approved by the CFO. In 2007, we will expend approx. $200,000 on roads and $50,000 on curbs, gutters and drain-drops. We are already approximately $50,000 over budget for those repairs.

Parts of Huber Ridge are close to 50 years old. Believe me, as we age, things change....and not always for the better. Any Trustee would like to have unlimited funds by which to address these problems, however, the funds must come from you and me, the taxpayers. I have always opposed tax increases unless there is clearly no alternative.

I am also compiling a comprehensive process by which our Board of Trustees will be able to force homeowners, who allow their property to become uninhabitable and/or unsafe, to make the necessary repairs and upgrades. If they fail to do so, the Board of Trustees may enter into a contract with a person or persons to do the repairs and then place a lien on the property to recover the costs. The Board may, if circumstances support the decision, have the structure razed. My research has indicated that this is possible; however, the procedures must be reviewed and approved by the Board's legal counsel. If the Board choses to go forward with the procedure, it will give us an enormous tool by which to force absentee home owners and landlords to maintain their property. The process will take time; however, it will result in relief for those residents who live close to homes in that state of deterioration.

It is true that I am up for re-election; however, that is not why I am concerned. My concern for this Township started in 1977 when I moved here and volunteered as a Reserve Police Officer. I started then with the intent to protect this community and I have not lost that intent. I have lived in Huber Ridge for 28 years and my wife of 37 years moved here in 1963. We love this community and I am extremely proud of all the Blendon Township staff that, like me, have a servant's heart. They have heard me say over and over that we only have one product to offer our residents...service.

Thank you for your comments and remember that all residents are welcome to attend our bi-weekly meetings and express any concerns.

I hope this information helps to clarify the issues you mentioned.

By Jerry L. Ward-Trustee Blendon Tp