Editorials

County embellishes its achievements

TBO.com
Published: March 18, 2012

Achievement (n) The act of accomplishing or finishing something, Something that has been accomplished successfully, especially by means of exertion, skill, practice or perseverance.

So says the American Heritage Dictionary.

Reporter Michael Bates wrote about the 13 major "Achievements" that were heralded in the county's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. To just examine a few of them, we will consider the following.

Take for instance the fabled Elgin Boulevard widening project. While it states the project began in 2011, it began before Commissioner John Druzbeck was elected, so its origins are pre-2008.

That's an exercise in practice, practice and more practice and one will finally get it right — maybe.

Another example of government at its worst was how the county taxpayers had to shell out outrageous amounts of money for the real estate along the route, with some homeowners getting two to three times the value of their homes.

The report also failed to mention that hundreds of thousands of dollars were diverted from SR 50 to help fund the road widening project, which by the way has two left turn lanes heading south at Mariner Boulevard and at Landover. All this for a road that is busy twice a day because of the schools located along its route.

Then there is the piece de résistance, the infamous "Dredge Project."

Started over a decade ago, it took longer to build than the Panama Canal, which was 50 miles long, give or take, and had to go through a mountain range.

It had to contend with yellow fever, malaria and months of torrential rain. This is truly an example of your government at work, and how to increase a $9 million project to a $15 million one. No wonder we have budget problems with this kind of management; $6 million in cost increases paid for by county taxpayers.

Remember the late Sen. William Proxmire and his annual Golden Fleece Award? The Dredge is definitely the top contender for this year's award.

One "achievement" that was noted that we certainly agree with was the opening of the new health department building on Forest Oaks Boulevard.

The former Health Department Administrator Elizabeth Callahan deserves the lion's share of the credit for doggedly pursuing the funding from the state. Hence, it gets the perseverance award for 2012. That's achievement! Well done!