Letter to the Editor

Heritage Lake discusses roads ... again

Friday, June 10, 2011

To the Editor:

Here we go again! The Heritage Lake Property Owners Board of Directors is revisiting the road project that was unanimously voted down a couple of years ago.

According to the highlights, a few representatives of the board made a vist to the Putnam County Commission-er's Office, advising them of their intent to get the roads fixed in the subdivisions at Heritage Lake. They will be sending a "survey" to all property owners to ask for a vote on whether the community favors or does not favor visiting this again.

This note is to caution you when you receive this "survey," to read it very carefully and if you vote "no" to your interest in this project, to make very sure that your vote will be counted as a firm "no." Also, make very sure that you return the "survey" back to the board quickly with your opinion vote so that a non-return of the "survey" will not be counted in the affirmative.

A clear understanding of the wording of this "survey" is mandatory by each property owner, as the wording could be such that might be misleading as to the intent of this project.

Of course, the real crux of this problem is money. It was voted down unanimously at a packed commissioner's meeting in Bainbridge in 2009, due to property owners not wanting to foot the expense for this very expensive project. Floating a bond under the Barrett Law was the suggested vehicle of payment at that time. Each property owner would be assessed a proportionate share of the multi-million dollar project with a payment schedule (if not paid up front in full) over a period of years. Do the math.

As was pointed out at the above-mentioned packed commissioner's meeting in Bainbridge two years ago, the roads at Heritage Lake belong to Putnam County, not to Heritage Lake and as such are not the responsibility of the property owners to maintain. This is what we pay taxes for -- mainly schools and roads, and I doubt any sane-minded property owner is anxious to pay double for maintenance of the roads. Do they need maintenance? You bet they do, but let the county pay for this maintenance with the dollars they collect from each and every one of us.

This is not the time for people to be burdened with yet another bill to pay. When it comes to putting food on the table or driving around the chuckholes, I'll bet all of you would choose the food.

Again, be very careful when making this decision and be reminded that the expense will be on our shoulders and we will be paying double for nice, smooth roads.

Please check the Facebook page for Heritage Lake roads for further updates.

Note: it would be wise to retain a copy of the completed "survey" letter for your files.

Kathy Winslow

A concerned property owner