Cambrian letters to the editor, Oct. 26, 2016
Lee logical choice for CCSD seat
Similar to several earlier letter writers, I was very disturbed to observe the recent Cambria Community Services District meeting held to select a replacement for Mike Thompson — it lacked organization and any fair process for this important task.
Although acceptable to the community present at the meeting, a technicality regarding the replacement of Mr. Sanders while he is still seated prevented a return to the last election’s vote count. In the ensuing chaos, due to no process, eight additional people submitted their names and were not even given a chance to speak.
Director Jim Bahringer argued that the replacement had to share Thompson’s opinions justified by Thompson’s vote results from the 2014 election. Thompson campaigned in 2014 for an Emergency Water System, not the SWF. Cambria ratepayers have never yet had a vote on this growth project.
Mr. Wharton spoke first in what clearly appeared prearranged to follow a number of people speaking in his favor. No matter the voices of any other candidates, this has only further hardened the division in our community, and increased the lack of credibility in the CCSD.
New Director Aaron Wharton’s answers to Director Harry Farmer’s questions lacked depth of knowledge and understanding of the issues, especially compared to the knowledge and financial acumen of candidates Dewayne Lee and former director Allan MacKinnon. With the precarious condition of CCSD finances, Cambria needs someone with strong skills to hit the ground running. I hope Mr. Wharton will, as he indicated, communicate to gather information from all the ratepayers, keep an open mind, and think independently as he moves forward.
I am writing this letter to educate citizens who were not at the meeting and to encourage the CCSD to do the right thing, which is to install Dwayne Lee for the second seat Nov. 3. The people deserve to be heard.
Ted Key, Cambria
CCHD board: There they go again
An exciting initiative to provide local, comprehensive dental care to underserved youth in our community is in the works.
This initiative led by Iggy Fedoroff in concert with the Cambria Pinedorado Lions Foundation and local dentists is in response to a gap in dental care identified by Coast Unified School District working with the Healthcare Advocacy Committee of the Cambria Community Healthcare District.
One would think an initiative to improve the dental health of children at no cost to taxpayers would be met with enthusiasm by all CCHD board members. This is not what I witnessed at the Oct. 18 board meeting. Rather, the board majority (Bob Putney, Mary Anne Meyer, and Jerry Wood) attempted to disrupt this worthy effort with misinformation and personal attacks directed at Mr. Fedoroff and board member Barbara Bronson Gray (Healthcare Advocacy Committee Chair) ostensibly for not obtaining board permission to pursue funding for this initiative.
When Mr. Fedoroff was finally allowed to address concerns, it became apparent that the CCHD board was only being asked to endorse, not approve, the initiative. As board member Shirley Bianchi noted, “It is always best to see documentation or go to the source” rather than believe rumors. In the end, the CCHD board voted unanimously to endorse this initiative.
The board majority’s initial outrage and subsequent appeasement is reminiscent of the late Gilda Radner’s Emily Litella character who, after correction for a misinformed rant, uttered the classic line, “Oh, that’s different ... never mind.” This might be amusing if misinformed rants by the board majority occurred infrequently. Unfortunately, they are an ongoing problem.
When the accusations began to fly the other day, I was disheartened and thought, “There they go again.” Over the past three years, I have witnessed multiple attempts by the board majority to prevent or subvert efforts to improve local health care options. The majority’s resistance is puzzling, as advocacy to improve healthcare is part of the CCHD’s stated mission and is being achieved at no additional cost to taxpayers. I can only conclude that, aside from our ambulance service, trustees Putney, Meyer and Wood lack the desire to understand or achieve our community’s expressed health care needs.
Laurie J. Mileur, PhD, RD, Cambria
This story was originally published October 25, 2017 at 9:20 AM with the headline "Cambrian letters to the editor, Oct. 26, 2016."