This letter is in response to your Guest Editorial in the March 4th issue of The Progressive Journal. My first question is who made Mr. Hough an expert on what is best for the Town of Pageland. Mr. Hough stated that constructing a pipeline from the North Carolina state line to Alligator Rural Water & Sewage Company’s new sewer treatment facility in McBee will be very expensive. But, it is far less expensive than upgrading both of Pageland’s existing sewer plants to provide the additional capacity needed for future growth. Does Alligator Rural Water & Sewage Company actually have a facility in McBee? No, I don’t think so! This whole project was based on the fact that The Towns of Pageland and Jefferson would just jump on the band wagon. You see, what I don’t understand about this whole picture is that as Mr. Hough said, The Pageland Chamber of Commerce and the Chesterfield County Economic Development Board are among groups backing the pipeline project then why don’t they partner with Alligator Rural Water & Sewage Company. Mr. Hough spoke of the grant money the said company may be eligible for. He said it is estimated that the grant funds will pay for at least half of the pipeline costs. There is no guarantee that they will be able to attain 50% of the funds for this project. On January 22, 2008 the Pageland Progressive Journal printed that Alligator Sewer & Water is going to build an l MGD Waste Water Treatment Plant in McBee. This will not allow Pageland any room for growth. If they (Alligator Sewer) do add on to the new plant who is paying for it? Where is the pipeline located in reference to Hwy. 151 and Van Lingle Mungo Blvd? Will it come to the South Plant to collect or will we have to build a lift station to pump it? If the North & South Plants are closed down, who will pay for clean up of plants. Does Alligator have engineered drawings? Who will be responsible for all the lift stations and line maintenance? The sewage plants in Pageland are nearing capacity only on the DHEC checkbook and can be reduced. The cost of maintaining treatment plants and sewer lines will increase for everyone, including Alligator. Conbraco are relocating some operations to Pageland is only office jobs (domestic sewage). It has been published that Alligator will almost double the average sewer bills. Is Alligator Sewer & Water affiliated with Chesterfield Rural Water? Do the people of Pageland want to refinance the town debt to 40 years when we have only approximately 12 years left to pay off the current debt which the treatment plants are paying, with extra leftover? The Town of Andrews is facing fines from DHEC for not cleaning up their closed treatment facilities. How long will be the length of the original contract? Would the people of Pageland want a small increase in sewer rates to expand their own plants or a larger increase in rates that they would have no control of increases from then on? When will Alligator show to Pageland Official plans for the line and plant to be built? All industries are not major wastewater contributors. If the town is the major contributor to get this line installed who else will be connecting to it in the future? By closing the WWTF, we will be taking clean water out of our streams and rivers contributing to the drought, meaning less wetland for animals and less water for potable waters users downstream. The committee which was formed by council, did not ask questions from the Waste Water Operators, nor did they review records of the treatment plants or HSMM, the engineers of Pageland who designed the plants in 1974, but got their data from other places, that have nothing to do the operations of the Waste Water Treatment Plants in Pageland.
Martha W. Hamilton,
Pageland Town Council
(Editor's note: this letter arrived Sunday evening, too late to include in this week's issue. It will be published in the March 18 issue.)
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9 comments:
I think Hamilton has a lot of nerve even commenting on this issue, after what she tried to pull on the tax payers of this town!
Mr. Hough made himself the expert by doing the due diligence to find out what is best. You had plenty of opportunity to ask questions of "the experts" when Chesterfield County Rural Water came to your council meeting. Instead, you rolled your eyes and appeared about as interested as a cat in a bucket of water. Oh, and let's see... did you go on the tour of the Cary Plant? Nope, I remember now. That would have been a silly idea.
Martha,
Mr. Hough taking initiative, something rare among elected officials, scares some people.
Your questions deserved to be answered. Perhaps a wiser letter to the editor would have been less confrontational so as to keep channels of communication open.
You are an elected official of the Town of Pageland. I would prefer you find the answers to the questions you posed and return to us in less than a month with the answers. You have the same means to derive the answers to your own questions as does any other member of the council. Then you can return to your constituents with statements of fact, void of sarcasm and person attacks, and fulfill your duty to the people of Pageland.
Benjamin Cook
Lord help us with this lady. First of all, is it not apparent with her first remarks that she has no business being in this position? Martha, here's a tip. Rather than open with a childish attack like "who made [him] the expert, try something else like "I'd like to explain my difference of opinion some members of council regarding the proposed sewer options" and then go on to explain your concerns. I respect those that can articulate a good discussion of facts. Get beyond the personal issues you seem to have with other council members. We don't care and you look very foolish.
Hamilton, Faile, Smith, and Baker are embarrassments to our community. As a prominent member of the upstate political scene said to me today; "It's time for you guys to clean house in Pageland". They recognize that it's time to move forward and rid ourselves of incompetent leadership.
Hamilton, Faile, Smith, and Baker are embarrassments to our community. As a prominent member of the upstate political scene said to me today; "It's time for you guys to clean house in Pageland". They recognize that it's time to move forward and rid ourselves of incompetent leadership.
You see, the problem that we face with some of the town council members, (hamilton, faile, baker, and smith) is that they are oh so busy sticking their nose's in other matters that they have no need to (ie. the pageland rescue squad). If they did the job they were elected to do this issue would not be a problem, because the infrastucture of this town would be were it should be for 2008 and not 1968.
Who keeps voting in these town officials? Oh, must be the voters of Pageland.
By the way, where has Tommy Rivers gone? Oh, he was voted off of council.
Apparently, your readers do not trust one thing they read in your paper and vote for who they can trust. Think about it!!!!!!
We're well aware that Rivers isn't on council. They haven't done anything since he lost his seat. Have a conversation with him and then spend some time with the four idiots. Then tell us how proud you are to have elected them.
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