The apology from Superintendent Stewart Amell should have been given to all the taxpayers of Sandy Creek school district; they are getting cheated out of thousands of dollars. The forester in question is not listed as a state Department of Environmental Conservation "cooperating consulting forester." Nor is he a member of the Society of American Foresters. The Board of Education and the superintendent should have verified some of his credentials, like they would someone applying for any position there at the school.
In two years the entire lot will be clear cut. Won't that make for a beautiful walk through our wooded community park? The logger cutting the timber stated to a community member that he did not like the way the lot was marked and how it was being cut. The tops will not be chipped, but will be left on the ground, which will result in a nice big eyesore for our townspeople to be reminded of every day.
Mr. Amell also failed to mention that trees are real property until they are cut down. The timber is considered real estate. It is illegal for the district to sell public real estate without a bid open to the public. Why weren't the taxpayers given the opportunity to vote on this project? Everything else is put out for a public vote, why not this?
Local loggers sell to local buyers and sawmills. Most loggers in this area strive to bid a lot at a 50 percent split. What the taxpayers are getting for this "deal" is an average of 20 percent. What does this mean in dollar amounts? This means for your average tractor-trailer load the taxpayers are losing about $650 per load. At 100 loads, that equals $65,000.
In addition, 107 red pine poles are being sold at about 20 percent profit, which equals another $3,210 loss to the taxpayers.
As our superintendent, Mr. Amell should have been looking out for all taxpayers; we are the ones paying his salary. Taxpayers should be aware that he just signed a four-year contract at a 14 percent increase; he now earns $135,000 yearly. Maybe Mr. Amell can afford to lose thousands of dollars but community members absolutely cannot.
Bottom line, if you keep the money in your community, the population as a whole will benefit, not just a select few.
If you have questions or concerns about how this was handled, you should contact any board member or attend the next board meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Sandy Creek School. This letter was submitted on behalf of 35 concerned taxpayers.
Brenda Yerdon
Lacona
