At the last election, I decided that I would vote for anyone who wasn't an incumbent, my rationale being that surely anyone new would be better than those we currently had on the board of education and the county board of commissioners who had gotten us into this mess.

These candidates also made big promises about how they would do things differently and get our county overgrowth problem under control.

Apparently, they aren't going to be keeping their election promises and I was wrong — I don't see any difference whatsoever.

The board of education and the commissioners, who are the two governmental agencies I hold responsible for the situation we are now in, should be ashamed of themselves. My children attend Spring Hill Elementary, a new school that is now entering its fifth school calendar year with disgusting, rusty, rundown, dilapidated trailers sitting right out front for all the world to see.

At the end of the school year when I originally found out that Spring Hill was going to have trailers the next school year I called Linda Wells' office and spoke in great length with her secretary about my feelings on this situation. Her secretary assured me that Ms. Wells would be calling me back and I left a message for her to do so. Big surprise, I didn't hear from anyone.

I spoke to the director of elementary schools and she had the nerve to tell me outright that it was my fault that there were going to be trailers at Spring Hill because I, along with hundreds of other citizens, had voted against the SPLOST last year.

Now let me see if I have this correct. County agencies have continued to allow the overgrowth of our county, the BOE and the commissioners seemingly don't work together to plan for this growth, they continue to spend millions of dollars on new schools that four, five or less years down the road have trailers sitting in front of them, and they now want the citizens of this county to vote for the SPLOST so that they can continue to be irresponsible where the well-being of the citizens of this county are concerned?

Additionally, this problems is all the fault of the citizens of this county?

I don't think so. This is a vicious circle that has to end — the party is over, my friends. I find it unbelievable that the BOE has the guts to ask for the SPLOST again after its defeat last year — obviously no one seems to get the message.

When I pulled into Spring Hill today, the first thing I saw was the school sign which says, “John Wieland - Your Partner in Education.” Some partner — he has managed to become extremely wealthy while the taxpayers of this county are continually burdened with more and more tax liability brought on directly by overgrowth, high density subdivisions (Lakemont and Lakeside for instance) and our children's brand new schools are turned into unsightly facilities by the addition of trailers, while he continues to build and build and build and get richer and richer. While some of his recent proposals have been rejected, its years late and several million dollars short.

This is not the way to win my vote for the SPLOST — if anything, I'm more adamant now to vote No!

I would be glad to hear from you and hear your arguments as to why I am wrong and why I should not vote against the SPLOST along with hundreds of other parents who have expressed their opinion to be similar to my own.

Barbara Leoni

Fayetteville

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