Apr. 23 letter called for a response

Dear Editor,

On rare occasions do I address a specific letter to the editor. However, in this particular instance I find it necessary to do so.

In an Apr. 23rd letter, the writer provided the following comment: "During the past two years…I have documented millions of taxpayer dollars wasted by the county leadership team. We now have invoices showing that $40,380 was spent at three Richmond clubs over the past two years." Some very salient points are necessary regarding this letter. First, there is a big disconnect between "millions of taxpayer dollars" and "invoices showing $40,000…"

Second, the current board has been in office approximately 100+ days. To attribute the spending habits of the prior board over the last two years is an inappropriate judgment of the performance of the current board.

Third, while some of these activities, if considered in a vacuum, would appear inappropriate, much more than the mere cost of the services, events, etc. needs to be considered. As noted by the county's director of public affairs, economic development is a competitive marketplace that, at times, requires conversations to be conducted in a less public forum than the eye of a camera lens; and, there are benefits that such club memberships at golf facilities or otherwise afford the county in meeting with prospective businesses. While there are golf and dining facilities in Chesterfield County, the best location for such a membership, if it is to be funded by taxpayer dollars, has to be a judgment based on all of the information available. The board "hires" the county administrator and can and should question such affiliations to ensure the county is getting the most "bang for the buck."

Fourth, current Virginia law does not require even the regularly scheduled meetings of an elected body to be videotaped. Virginia law only requires that minutes of those meetings be taken and made a part of the public record. In the situation cited in the Apr. 23 letter, minutes were recorded and have been available on the county Web site for well over two months.

Finally, as citizens it is important that we get beyond the events of the past and engage our current board on [its] decisions, not those of [its] predecessors. Regarding the meal with legislators, supervisors and county staff, let's put it in its proper perspective. $1,400 out of a $1.2 billion budget is .00012% of the Chesterfield County budget. Conversely, because of the swift action by supervisors who had just assumed their leadership positions two weeks earlier, not just millions of dollars but tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions, were saved by delaying action of the Virginia General Assembly on Senator Watkins' impact fee bill.

It is important that we engage our leaders on the "important" issues of the day - issues of significance and issues over which they have had the ability to exercise some control or influence. Let's not continue debating the 2004 Bond Referendum, the location of a middle school as part of that referendum, or expenditures that occurred two or more years ago.

We cannot move forward while dragging the ball and chain of the past along with us.

Bob Herndon

Matoaca District