Scott:

     Critical Services suffer in Geauga County while the Geauga Park District spends like drunken pirates…. 
     We need to rescind the Geauga Park District funding levies and allow them to support their extravagant salaries and lifestyles solely through private donations. 
     In case you missed it, the Geauga Park District is spending $2.5 million to develop Observatory Park. The commissioners Robert McCullough, Mark Rzeszotarski and John Leech approved a temporary budget for 2011, including a $7.3 million general fund and a $6.4 million construction fund, appropriations of $1.1 million for land acquisition, $5.1 million for contracted projects, $203,000 for construction contractual services, $2.9 million to cover personnel costs, $600,000 for contingencies, $242,481 for supplies, $246,776 for materials, $406,652 for equipment, $709,482 for special service contracts and $30,100 for repair contracts. 
     The libraries are making drastic cutbacks, children’s services have asked for a new levy because their budgets have been slashed, Geauga county employees wages are frozen, the county just figured out they have to pay back $644,000 in sales tax revenue they erroneously received, the 2010 county budget is already over $700,000 in the red and the 2011 budget deficit could be as high as $1,400,000! 
     We need to rescind the Geauga Park District funding levies.  They will do just fine operating on grants and donations.

Judy K. Zamlen-Spotts

**************

Judy:  As I have been saying for years now on this blog, the Geauga Parks system is so fat it oinkes...  The park system is completely out of step with the needs of Geauga County.  I would RIGHT NOW like to see a usage study of these park systems - I would be willing to bet the farm that the majority of the people who use the parks ARE NOT FROM GEAUGA COUNTY, THEY ARE FROM CUYAHOGA OR LAKE COUNTIES!  So OUR tax dollars are going to provide FREE leisure time activities for the city people 30 miles away!  What a freakin' joke...  And a very expensive joke on us Geauga County taxpayers!

     Yes, the millions that will be spent on this old "observatory" is absurd given the financial climate and the community that surrounds it, but paying $106,000 yearly for a park "director" and $96,000 yeraly for some "program director" (nature walk PR guy) is INSANE and excessive as well.  The whole program stinks...

     I ask this:  WHERE ARE THE THREE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS DURING ALL OF THIS?  Where?  Having a tea party or a three-martini lunch with the park directors on our dime? 

     Again I ask:  How many services do we REALLY NEED in this county?  Come on!  Think about it...  And how much do we REALLY NEED to pay for these services?  Why would we pay for services for OTHER COUNTIES or cities like Youngstown or Cleveland or Menntor?  WE CANNOT AFFORD IT!  WE CANNOT SUSTAIN IT! 

     Because the Geauga Parks system can AFFORD to renovate a structure for $3 million PROVES they are very, very fat...  So why keep buying more land? Why keep running these levies?  Why keep building "super bike trails" that are so very out of keeping with our county's financial situtation.  It's an embarrassment every time I drive under one of those "Star Wars" looking bike bridges that look like they could support a Sherman tank!

     Until the sheep of Geauga County wake up, these levies will go on and on!  Pretty soon the only disposable income the taxpayers will have is a buck for a bottle of water and free trip down the bike trail...  Oh the horror...  Oh the horror...