To the Editor:
I have always tried to be an optimistic person, despite the best efforts of selected individuals who continue to demonstrate that they just don’t get it. After four and a half years and wasting more than $500,000 of taxpayer dollars, I hope St. Charles County Executive Joe Ortwerth has FINALLY gotten the point. How many judges does it take saying no for a lightbulb to go on for the county executive? The St. Peters TIF is and always has been a legal use of this important economic development tool.
Where is the outrage from the other elected officials? The members of the County Council are not commenting at all on this outrageous use of our tax dollars. At Monday night’s Council meeting, not one council member held Mr. Ortwerth accountable for this outrage. Mr. Ortwerth, who pursued this frivolous lawsuit as an individual as well as directing the County’s reckless pursuit of this case, has some explaining to do.
Maybe the silence of some the County Council members have to do with their campaign contributions from Adolphus Busch and his cronies. Joining Mr. Ortwerth at the last moments of this foolish escapade were Mr. Busch and his Great Rivers Habitat Alliance. Talk about strange bedfellows. They do share one objective. The will say and do anything – don’t confuse them with any facts – to try to destroy the City of St. Peters.
The County has said they have spent only $110,000 on this case. Really? This does not count their in-house staff of reportedly 6-7 attorneys, during a time when Mr. Ortwerth claims there is a funding shortfall. He apparently has no problem spending money trying to damage the municipality of St. Peters, singling them out in his efforts. Why hasn’t he gone after the TIFs in St. Charles at Bass Pro or Fountain Lakes? Or the convention Center? Why indeed. Mr. Ortwerth has owned two homes and currently lives in St. Peters.
It’s been nearly a year ago since I became a private citizen. It was an honor to be elected by the citizens of our city for more than two decades. It was a personal disappointment to lose the position as Mayor of the city I love, and had helped to grow to what it has become over the twenty-to years of my service. But, I thought one positive thing would come out of it – that Joe Ortwerth’s personal quarrels with me would no longer interfere with progress and a positive relationship between the County and St. Peters. I was wrong. I’m asking Joe to forgive me my trespasses as I have forgiven others.
Tom Brown
Dear Editor:
I would venture to say a majority of the residents of the City of St. Charles could not care less whether the St. Charles 27 hole golf course is developed or not and contrary to what the people living there and enjoying the fine view feel, I doubt if the rest of us would want to be in the position of subsidizing a nine hole golf course for them either. Un less the residents accept the reality of an owner’s right to sell his property to a buyer ready, able and willing to develop as he feels fit and legally conforming to zoning laws. I would vote against the city annexing this property.
Carol Diller
