Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

This is in response to a letter written by Sherry Silva which appeared in the August 28 Nugget.

On behalf of our staff and management, I apologize for any inconveniences caused by the actions of our employees at Suttle Lake.

During the week of August 18-24, there were several large fires burning in Central Oregon. The fire danger was extreme. Thousands of trees in and around Suttle Lake are dead and dying. This creates a very hazardous situation during high winds and high fire danger.

Employees of Northwest Land Management are very concerned about our campers' safety and welfare. During this period, employees circulated the campgrounds and asked campers to keep their campfires low to minimize the risk of an escaped fire. During conditions such as we recently experienced, a small fire can rapidly become a roaring inferno. Employees had to put out a number of fires outside of fireplaces and reduce fires which were too large.

We attempted to be polite, fair and consistent in our administration of fire restrictions and warnings. Due to the number of campsites and campers that we had to contact, we might not have taken adequate time to determine which campers were experienced and knowledgeable with fire. (Unfortunately, many are not!) In conveying urgency and fervency we also apparently appeared rude and discourteous. That was clearly not our intent.

Northwest Land Management is proud of its history of operating the Suttle lake campgrounds and its relationship with the U.S. and strive to make visits memorable and enjoyable. I welcome any comments.

Sincerely,

Scott B. Pineo, General Manager

In response to Karen Yeargain's letter on dogs running loose: An occasional dog running loose to me is a lot better than listening to Huskies singing constantly. I would call it yapping and whining. You can hear her dogs two streets away daily from 5:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

I'm sure when it's your own animals we overlook a lot. But maybe we could all possibly look in our own yards before judging others and their animals.

Kirstan Anderson

(Editor's note: The following letter was submitted to the Sisters City Council. It has been edited for length.)

We would like you to respond to a simple request: Will you disclose to the public the costs imposed on the public by particular land use decisions?

The bond issues put forth to the public consist almost entirely of unpaid systems development charges. When developers do not pay for the costs of development the costs fall on the public.

The enclosed study indicates that for each new house that is built the SDCs are approximately $28,000. Bend charges $4,200, less than 15 percent of the costs. According to the Bend School District, the SDC for schools is about $12,000 per new house.

The legislature, responding to particular political pressures, has restricted communities from charging SDCs for schools. If you wish to make changes in this restriction on local fiscal responsibility it will require that local representatives to the state help change the rules. We may help you find other ways of shifting costs of development to the developers, if you wish to do so.

Our request for disclosure is a plea for honesty about the costs of development and recognition of the current practice of public subsidy of private development. Someone must pay for SDCs, either those who create and profit by the development or other citizens who do not.

The normal practice for school SDCs is to make a plea for the quality of education of the student to expand schools, as though a bond issue is the only solution.

Any open declaration on your part need only be the best approximation. Most of the figures are available. A proposed 100-house development could impose over $2 million in costs to the community through unpaid SDCs.

The bottom line of good government is honest disclosure. The matter of fiscal responsibility is crucial to a community, and current subsidies are not understood by most people, including local journalists who become mainly involved in the debate of whether we are going to deprive our young children by voting down the bond issue.

Who should pay is the issue, not whether it should be paid. Please take a vote on your position and indicate where each of you stand. The public will appreciate knowing where you stand on this basic fiscal issue.

William Boyer, Chairman, The Alliance for Responsible Land Use in Deschutes County

Generous thank yous to everyone who loaned or provided coolers for the fire-fighters at Park Meadow. The response was wonderful.

Cathy Gowing