What Are We Doing?

Skewing the facts (March 22, 2017)

I attended the hastily called Apple Valley Town Council meeting last week where a special election was called to vote on $150 million in bonds. My late husband Chuck and I fought and won this right for all Apple Valley residents, but I can’t help but state that this election would have been nearly $200,000 cheaper if the Council had just listened to people like us in the first place.

I also am worried about some of the statements presented as truths and facts but they are not. A judge in a similar case in Claremont has already shown that the town can’t win by arguing about higher water rates, and that seems to be their only argument. In Claremont, where they were represented by the same legal firm, their water takeover loss has cost them over $14 million. Claremont may be able to afford that, but Apple Valley certainly cannot.

As in Claremont, a judge will also likely find that that the Town of Apple Valley cannot lower rates and provide the same rates either, like our finance director Marc Puckett stated. At the meeting, I was concerned about this promise asserting that rates would be lowered, because in the same presentation Mr. Puckett said that they did not have all the information about Liberty’s expenses. How can you be so sure you can lower rates immediately when you don’t know all the facts? It is too sad that people will believe what they want to believe even when the facts are skewed.

Patricia Hanson, Apple Valley

Source: Daily Press