Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

Budget woes of the City of Sisters were publicized in a Nugget article and editorial August 14. In the same issue was a whitewash article by Jean Cooper, council president, who incidentally is up for re-election November 5.

Cooper's article deals primarily with some of the mechanics of bookkeeping -- what is allowed and not allowed -- and completely ignores the fact that over the last four years the city has been spending more than it has been taking in. You can have a perfect set of books and still be losing your shirt!

Ms. Cooper proclaims City Administrator Barbara Warren's honesty and integrity. To the writer's knowledge this is not, and never has been, an issue. To bring this matter up is a red herring and ignores the fact we are spending more than we are bringing in.

Any criticism or suggestions on how the books are kept and how the budget is produced invariably are replied to by Barbara Warren with, "This is the system I inherited," and "The auditors approve." Both excuses are poor. Almost any system can be improved, and an auditor's primary job is to determine if the numbers add up. Again, you can have perfect books but be losing your shirt. This is Sisters' case at the moment.

Our overspending situation publicly came to light in mid-August -- only six weeks into a new budget year. How can this be? Ms. Warren's weak response was, "I don't know," which tells one nothing. Something is lacking.

One possible reason for lack of situation awareness on Barbara Warren's part may be lack of overall comparative analysis. For the last eight years the writer has urged the production of budget summaries which should be used to make year-by-year total comparisons. Thus you can see how you are doing totally compared to previous years.

The writer is not an accountant but thinks he has a bit of common sense. I am also aware of the difference between a line item comparison, which gives a specific picture of a specific item, and an overall comparison, which gives the "big picture" with which the city has to deal in toto.

Barbara Warren has stubbornly stonewalled any such ideas, but finally has produced handwritten comparative summaries on scratch paper. This is how our spending deficiencies have been revealed. These summaries should be formally incorporated into the present and future budgets.

Where has the writer been all this time? On the budget committee, being stiff-armed. Without overall summaries and comparative analyses, a budget committee is pretty much a "rubber stamp" operation.

In the August 14, editorial, The Nugget posed four good budget questions. Jean Cooper and Barbara Warren should answer these questions independently. What are the chances of this happening? I am sure The Nugget would be only too happy to print the answers.

The city's finances are in good shape to the extent we are not broke, but we are on a fast slide to being broke. We will have to make some severe cuts in the remainder of this year's and next year's budgets. The situation is serious but not catastrophic if we act promptly. Such plans are belatedly beginning to take shape.

Respectfully submitted,

Gordon Petrie

To the Editor:

I wish to congratulate Mr. John Groom for his honesty in his latest letter to the editor, September 25 issue. He asked the question "Is this what Sisters really wants? Is this type of growth worth the loss of views."

This really is the issue, isn't it Mr. Groom? As you and other residents along Pine Street fear the most, any development of the Sokol Ranch will change your view and make it just like everyone else in Sisters who has to look at the backside of your house.

Who told you when you bought your land that the green pastures of Sokol's and Patterson's ranches will forever remain "green pastures?" If you want to keep the view, buy the ranch! It's not the Sokol's responsibility to provide you with your view.

For months we've heard about your "concern" for "overburdened city services" and "added traffic congestion."

If you were sincerely concerned, why did you move here and add to the problem? As for self-serving developers, if it wasn't for Harold Barclay, Bill Reed and family, Dick Carpenter, Joe Fought and men of similar vision to share our little bit of heaven with others, over half the people in Sisters wouldn't have homes and businesses to live and work in. So who really is the self-server?

It's a profound compliment to those who helped build Sisters that others, "tourists" want to come and visit our little town. If you want a town that doesn't grow, move to Riley. I think it's disgusting that good money that could go to make the project even nicer has to be spent on lawyers to fight complainers.

The real "growing pains" are people like you who move here then try and close the gate so others can't. Your crying about the PMR Development is exactly what makes "the growing pains." When you moved here you found Sisters a friendly town and it offends me that you now have changed that.

Sincerely,

Ed Beacham

To the Editor:

Thank you to the owners of Pine Meadow Ranch for not being "anxious" as you were labeled last week.

Anxious owners would have sold to an outside development company and we would have all been sorry. I also believe a vote of appreciation should be extended to "the developer," a local resident who has demonstrated to this community over the past years numerous valuable contributions that demonstrate nothing less than sensitivity and "class."

The comment was made about owner/Realtor/developer hype last week. Quite frankly, Sisters has never witnessed and probably never will witness what true owner, developer hype really is. Be thankful.

The fact is, this land will be developed by someone; be grateful the owners are who they are and that they have shown sensitivity, creativity and class with this project.

What I always find amusing is that the only developer a homeowner likes is the one whot provided the land or home for their own personal residence. Let's use our energy to give creative and helpful ideas to the project that will benefit the community. I believe any one of us would do the same thing with the property.

Best Regards,

Del R. Erlandson

To the Editor:

Re: The front-page story in last week's Nugget regarding the proposed gopher-poisoning project.

By the Forest Service's own admission, the poison can be passed on to owls who ingest contaminated gophers. The statement about there not being enough poison in one gopher to kill an owl is pure nonsense! The only reason an owl will quit eating gophers after the first one is because it died.

I've found dead screech owls, magpies, ground squirrels, chipmunks, weasels, mice and even woodpeckers lying around old porcupine strychnine-baited stations that were on the Fort Rock District years ago. The Forest Service no longer uses this method because of the fatality to non-target animals.

The feds tried to give us the same "Oh, don't worry..." stuff back when they were using 1080 to kill coyotes. They claimed there was not enough poison in the contaminated horse meat to kill an eagle or any other non-target species. Baloney!

The 1080 poison has also been banned in the U.S. because it was found to be toxic to whatever ingested it. The same can be said of strychnine.

It's an interesting paradox. On one hand the Forest Service is legally responsible for the habitat that provides food, shelter and safety for Oregon's wildlife, and on the other hand they set out poison to kill the same wildlife.

For what? So we can have another monoculture (trees of all the same species lumped together) that in reality is a tree farm, not a forest.

Gophers, left alone to do what they're designed to do, can help -- by eating surplus trees and providing habitat for other organisms -- to bring about greater diversity in a forest. And biological diversity is the first step toward the objective everyone desires: "forest health."

Jim Anderson

To the Editor:

I want to thank all in the community who were so helpful when Russ died so suddenly last week.

9-1-1 responded quickly and did all they could; and Sisters police, the county sheriff's department and Cloverdale fire department all came to help. They were all most compassionate.

At a time when it is difficult to think of ways to help, neighbors and friends were here to help me and our two sons and their families handle our grief. I will thank them all later, but I want the town to know how much I appreciate all everyone did. It confirms again that our decision to move here five years ago was the right one.

Our sons and their families join me in expressing our deep appreciation.

Phoebe Olson

Eric and Susan Olson

Craig and Theresa Olson

To the Editor:

I was injured in a car accident in May of '95, leaving me paralyzed from the chest down. Since then I have been learning how to get around by myself, including driving with hand controls.

Something that is a great hindrance is the abuse with handicap parking permits. These are greatly abused, and mostly by the permit holders.

I wouldn't mind at all parking a ways away, but I need the designated spot for the extra room to put my chair together alongside my door. In a regular spot people can park so close that I don't have room for my chair.

The most common form of misuse is for the person with the disability to stay in the car while the other person goes inside. Why do they need to tie up a spot if they aren't going in? Another common thing to happen is to have the spouse using the car so they have a permit but the person it's for isn't even there. It's amazing how people need to park close at Costco but then can go inside and cruise all over the place! I'll bet 80-90 percent of the rigs at the bigger stores in the marked areas are cheating, thus making it very difficult for those of us who really need the spot for our wheelchair.

Also, as soon as the snow starts, I dread looking for a spot because that's always where the snow is piled up, in the handicap area. Now doesn't that make sense? Or that's where they stock-pile all the shopping carts.

But one thing I want to make very clear, 98 percent of the violators are the people with the permits. I wish I knew who to contact to find out why there isn't better enforcement.

Thank you,

Mickey Pearson

To the Editor:

After 16 years in beautiful Sisters, I am relocating my CPA practice to Bend.

You have been so supportive that I can never thank you enough. Although I was admittedly disappointed in the outcome of the building trial, it's not the end of the world. I still presently have my beautiful Drake Park home. I have dear children, a loving family, great friends, an excellent and supportive staff, wonderful clients and my faith.

Concerning my building -- I almost won, but I never once quit -- what a valuable personal, professional and financial experience! We chart our own destinies, but uncontrollable things happen for a purpose and I'm beginning to glimpse the proverbial "silver lining."

Life's adventure continues, and I look forward to all that the future holds.

God be with you all.

Sincerely,

Arthur C.F. Pratt, CPA, MBA

To the Editor:

The second annual Sisters Folk Festival has come and gone. We're pleased with how the event unfolded -- it's great having performers like Ian Tyson, Guy Clark, Hollis Taylor and Raphael Cristy visit our town.

The performers had a wonderful time, and all of them commented on how hospitable our area is. The middle/high school is a wonderful venue.

We had audience members from all over the West. We even had a songwriting contest finalist come all the way from Toronto!

Our presenting sponsor, The Small Farmers Journal, deserves special recognition. Lynn Miller and Suzanne Clark gave us sound advice, and were always available to help with any task. We also want to thank Metabolic Maintenance Products, Inc., Les Schwab Tires of Central Oregon, Pepsi Bottling Company of Bend and radio station KICE for their assistance.

But I want to especially extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the volunteers who made the event actually work without the wheels coming off. Peggy Parker did a magnificent job of coordinating the volunteers. It was hot and crowded in the cafetorium, and all the volunteers were gracious and friendly to those attending the festival.

We look forward to planning next year's event and would appreciate any comments or suggestions anyone has for making it better.

Dick Sandvik

Sisters Folk Festival Steering Committee

To the Editor:

My name is Evan Brubaker and I was a finalist in the folk festival song contest this year.

I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the Sisters Folk Festival running a song contest. There are no other song contests in the Pacific Northwest and you are doing an important service not only to area songwriters but the nation at large by raising awareness of the region and what it has to offer.

The fact that folks came from as far away as Toronto to compete does great service to the festival. I am sure that it will grow with leaps and bounds and I will do whatever I can to support it and spread the word.

Thanks,

Evan Brubaker

To the Editor:

Since 1983 Habitat for Humanity International has declared the third weekend in September "International Day of Prayer and Action for Human Habitat." The Day of Prayer is intended to make housing a matter of conscience in the Christian community. It also offers an opportunity to join with others around the world in praying for those inadequately housed.

Sisters Habitat is very pleased that the following churches honored Habitat's "Day of Prayer": Sisters Baptist Church, St. Edward's Church, Church of the Transfiguration, Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Church of the Nazarene, and the Chapel in the Pines.

Also, thank you to Ray Buselli and the High Mountains Dixieland Jazz Festival for giving us the opportunity to distribute the Day of Prayer leaflets at the Sunday morning gospel concerts.

We appreciate the prayers and support which help us to help our neighbors in need.

Sincerely,

Sharlene Weed

Sisters Habitat for Humanity