When County Council gets going on something we all need to get out in front of any serious decisions for the future of our county.
Case in point: For close to 20 years the Western Fairfield district has been under the control of Councilman Kamau Marcharia, who’s been unable to get anything accomplished of any significant substance. Of course this is just my take and I’m sure he has a different vision.
What the Dawkins community can be proud of is our citizens who pushed and pressed the county for the recreation center to be built, and that has been approved. Thank you everyone. We will be breaking ground and building a rec center on 8 acres of property generously supplied by SCE&G.
Recently we have discovered that the property 6/10th of a mile up the road would have been a much better site. And here is why: the recreation lake on Monticello has been open and operating for years, its entrance and property are easily accessed from the road. There is currently water, electricity and roads on this property, and more importantly this piece of property has already been approved by the Recreation Department for use.
The current 8 acres still owned by SCE&G has to be worked, cleared and improved, and this will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Maybe I should have titled this opinion “In hindsight;” nonetheless, the idea of asking SCE&G to swap the properties was suggested several times by several people, and although it might be a little late, it’s never too late to do the right thing, which ultimately is to be prudent with our tax money and efficient and precise in the decisions made.
We will be entering the election year very soon. We will not forget past transgressions that have not been publicly addressed. The Council position is for a term of four years; that’s not, nor was it ever intended to be, a lifelong career. The three Council people sitting and waiting on this coming election have all worn their seats out. It’s time for them to find a real job and give someone who still has the community’s best interest at heart a shot.
Jeff Schaffer
Lake Monticello
