Letter: Lose non-essential programs

Dear Editor:

If the citizens of St. Johns County have attended any of the seven “Town Hall” budget meetings, the new “Quality of Life” enhancement may cause them to question the County’s motives.

While County Administrator Wanchick is telling the taxpayers that the County is broke and in need of additional revenue (made possible by their proposed increased millage rate to property owners), they are offering another “non-essential” service to beachgoers near Mickler’s Landing, “…where the parking lot is usually overflowing on weekends.”

This FREE “service” will pick up beachgoers at Mickler’s to return to the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall every half-hour between 10:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

This “Quality of Life” service will be FREE of charge to those using this service for three
Saturdays, June 25th, July 2nd and July 9th. A fee would “likely” be charged to offset the cost of service, should a permanent shuttle program be implemented.

Signage will appear at nearby roadways to inform the public of this “Quality of Life” enhancement.

Are you serious???!!!

As a taxpayer, I would like to know if the County has performed a cost analysis on this egregious added expense, as well as if and why taxpayers are paying for the signage, the vehicles, the drivers, and the gasoline, even for the limited three-Saturday “testing”.

Thanks, but NO thanks Mr. Wanchick, County Commissioners and Parks and Recreation Department. We the People are not interested in funding yet another “Quality of Life” program during this economic climate, particularly while you are traveling around the County telling us you plan to increase our taxes because we have a $12M shortfall.

Maybe it’s time the citizens begin helping St. Johns County officials figure out how to find the $12M shortfall in these non-essential “Quality of Life” programs.

A good start would be to cut 10% out of the St. Johns County Recreation and Parks Department’s proposed $5.7M budget. In order to implement a program such as this, there must be extra dollars in that departmental account, even though they show up at every meeting lobbying for more tax dollars and pleading that their budget not be reduced, using “for the good of the children” as their mantra.

Maybe every department listed in the proposed budget should seek the wisdom of Sheriff Shoar.

Please, St. Johns County citizens, become informed and have some input as to how our tax dollars are being spent. You might be very surprised.

Patti Henderson
St. Augustine, FL