Letters to the Editors

Hold leaders responsible for fiascoes

Editor: Recently I went to a local lube shop for a full-service oil change that included checking and adjusting various fluid and pressure levels. I paid the bill and departed the shop. I later discovered the fluid and pressure levels annotated on the sales receipt by shop employees as being checked and okay were actually not checked and required adjusting.

I returned to the shop and spoke with the manager, who immediately became defensive and adamantly discredited my complaint, especially checking of the battery, for he had personally inspected the battery. However, he had no comment after we checked the fluid and pressure levels together and found all of them requiring adjustment, including all eight cells of my battery being low.

I requested a minimal refund of the difference between their full service and regular oil change, but the manager refused and told me to contact the shop's owners.

All the while, during the manager's loud, sarcastic and unprofessional behavior, I was thinking why someone, especially a manager, caught red-handed cheating a customer would have no fear of his actions nor consequences from his bosses?

This incident with the lube shop illustrates the underlying reasons for the chaos in our county government:

Senior staff members accepting gifts from companies seeking business with the county.

A dysfunctional emergency management department, with wasted time, energy and money spent investigating the allegations.

Lack of initiative to annually review county personnel policies.

Dragging of feet on conducting a pay study for the hard-working and underpaid county employees.

Apparent zero confidence in the advice of the county attorney.

Frequent hiring of consultants to perform jobs that senior staff members should be able to accomplish.

The utterly ridiculous decision to hire a lobbyist regarding the proposed purchase of Florida Water Service's Spring Hill utility system.

The whole fiasco is an embarrassment to honest and dedicated county employees, establishes a poor precedence of accountability and sets extremely low standards of conduct and performance.

Why would the shop's manager, and some county senior staff members, conduct themselves in such a blatantly unethical and unprofessional matter? Why allow it to exist and fester?

What is the solution? As for the lube shop, I contacted the owner and requested a full refund, decided never again to patronize that shop, and filed a complaint with the appropriate agency.

As for county government, we should send a clear and concise message to the commissioners this upcoming election by electing two new commissioners. Let's elect intelligent, articulate and strong leaders.

As customers and taxpayers, we should expect and demand quality and responsive service, efficiency, cost savings and effective leadership.

You decide; it's your money.
-- Christopher Washington, Spring Hill

Wal-Mart will bring in taxes, improvements

Editor: I have been reading and listening to the rhetoric and written comments about the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Spring Hill. I repeat, Spring Hill, not Aripeka or Hernando Beach, where most of this opposition hails from.

According to CAUSE, 20,000 vehicles pass this intersection a day. If Wal-Mart is built, the traffic will enter and return on U.S. 19, not greatly affecting Osowaw Boulevard. Just because the residents of Hernando Beach were allowed to build that monstrosity that says "Hernando Beach," which is 4 miles west, who gave them permission to lie?

This is within Spring Hill's boundaries and the sign should say either Spring Hill or "To Hernando Beach."

Furthermore, the proposed park will bring much more traffic to the area and will impact the black bears, because this park is much deeper into the preserve. (I have lived here for 15 years and have seen only one black bear, 14 years ago.)

We have a smelly water treatment plant and a garbage dump at this entrance. Wal-Mart is a tax boon for this county, folks, and we had better think twice before caving in to this hysteria from CAUSE. It would serve all of us right if Wal-Mart did not build a supercenter in Brooksville and moved its warehouses and new stores across county lines. I'm sure Citrus, Sumter and Pasco counties would love it.

Additionally, there is already a school and a community in this very area and both are farther into the preserve than Wal-Mart will be.

Wake up, Spring Hill, especially the tax honeypots of Timber Pines, Wellington and Seven Hills and surrounding areas. Wal-Mart will build somewhere for sure. This location is ideal for us and them. It will give us tax revenue and affordable shopping.

Our politicians should pay close attention to this, especially Chris Kingsley. Mr. Kingsley should consider conferring with Ray Lossing, because come November taxpayers will remember that he voted to keep County Administrator Paul McIntosh in and Wal-Mart out.

Certainly, Wal-Mart will beautify the frontage and be an asset to our area. Maybe it will encourage the powers that be to clean up the smelly water treatment plant, which is so offensive to drive past.

I favor Wal-Mart, to help keep my taxes down and provide needed employment. (Hernando County's unemployment rate is 5 percent.)

This CAUSE thing is out of hand with its meetings and its Web sites. We should rebut with a taxpayers meeting and Web site.
-- Joseph O'Brien, Spring Hill

School Board members brush aside problems

Editor: There have been several statements and also some newspaper articles about School Board members and the upcoming election. Being a blue-collar worker who is going on his 18th year in this school system, it is no big deal to me who is elected or re-elected.

I was employed at one of the county high schools for 41/2 years. I was almost daily harassed and regularly accused of things that were untrue. I repeatedly sought help from School Board members and also from a couple of past superintendents. The only help I could get was from my union. But the union was limited because of board policies, etc.

It is very sad to see the things that are brushed aside or completely ignored by board members, who make as much or real close to the same pay as me with 171/2 years of service.

I know that a lot of my problems were about political people who stay in the system until retirement, no matter how they treat their employees. And I am not saying that all board members would respond the same way to my complaints. But after talking to five or six of them, you feel like giving up.
-- Ron Earles, Brooksville

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The Hernando Times welcomes letters from readers for publication.

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Send your letter to Hernando Times, 161 E Jefferson St., Brooksville, FL 34601. To fax a letter call 754-6133. Send letters by e-mail (in text-only format) to hernando@sptimes.com.

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