Comments on: EDITORIAL: Laws Meant to Be Broken

By: Deborah Bender

Deborah Bender — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 12:51:13 +0000

Gordon — You bet something is going on here in Cape Charles. The town is “selling” the school to an out of town developer for the grand sum of $10. The town knocked 75% off of the hook-up fees and is throwing in $41,000 in insurance money from the earthquake! This developer will then do repairs to the building using Federal & State tax credits, rent apartments for 5 years…sell the building and laugh all the way to the bank.
If you want the REAL TRUTH on what is going on contact me @ dbender_01@msn.com
P.S. The reason that the building is in such ill repair is that the town broke their own code and did no repairs for years.

By: David Gay

David Gay — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 12:33:58 +0000

Mr. Campbell, with all due respect — The town paid about $41,000 in insurance money to Eschelon to take the school. Eschelon paid the town $10. The town gave away the parking lot for the playground and the basetball court. In addition, the town cut the hookup fees for water and sewage in half. And you think that is a good deal ?

You think that OSCC’s offer of $10,000 was too low? Then why didn’t Eschelon pay fair market value for the property? And why did the town ignore the suggestion of its citizens to require a performance bond on the Eschelon Project? It does make you wonder if something else is going on here, and so far no proper explanation has been given to put people’s minds at ease. This could be easily cleared up with full disclosure by the town and Eschelon regarding the details of this deal and why it was structured in this manner.

By: Bruce Lindeman

Bruce Lindeman — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 12:28:50 +0000

I am a “come here”. We’ve all come from somewhere. Some have been “here” longer than others. But, unless you are of native American heritage, we all came here from… somewhere. However, the value of your relationship with something has more to do with the quality of that relationship than the longevity of that replationship. My parents moved to their vacation home town 30 years ago and have made significant contributions to their little town during that time through community/church work and volunteering one day each and every week in their local thrift shop for the past 20 years. I dare say they have given back more than many of the long-time residents with much deeper roots that go back 400 years. Quality versus quantity.

Community requires a mix of people: those with deep family roots, new families and individuals, people of different socio-economic, ethnic, religious, sexual, and political backgrounds and leanings. THAT is what makes a place unique and enjoyable. It is why, in part, Cape Charles IS a vibrant place to visit and live.

We all don’t have to agree on issues and we all don’t have to have family rooted here for 100+ years. But, what we should do is respect one another for who we are, for what we bring to the community, and for what insight we can provide to better our town. I see “come heres” working side by side with long-term residents on cultural events here in town. They volunteer and assist in other charitable events. Are their contributions any less valued because their fathers didn’t go to the old Cape Charles School? I think not. They are out in the community trying to make it a better place and I commend them for that. These people should be valued and not ridiculed because they were born and raised elsewhere.

Flip the coin, and I love talking to some of the older residents here in town. The stories I’ve heard about the history of the place, the characters, and the excitement they get when they reconcile the vibrant town they grew up in with the town we are becoming today is beautiful. They lived through the ghost town years here. They get it. Frankly, without a handful of come here dreamers, Cape Charles would still be in that same place. But, it takes everyone to build that dream.

All of this is fine and good, but the question we should be asking ourselves is: how do we determine the best solutions for the town, for ourselves, and for our children? By attacking one another and letting emotions get in the way of good citizenship, we’re losing sight of the true mission: to constantly better our town — together — and not for the benefit of one interested party.

Yes, be vocal! It’s good to have convictions. But, don’t forget about respect and to also listen to each other. We learn much when we simply close our lips and simply listen. Be inclusive in your arguments and don’t alienate people who are and should be part fo the solution. We all pay our taxes and we all contribute to this place. There is no law that gives anyone special rights due to their longevity in a place. Be kind and the world will be kind back to you.

By: Gordon Campbell

Gordon Campbell — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 03:51:27 +0000

Could someone clear up some confusion? The Old School group has offered the town $10,000 for the school. But a poster above says the school is valued at $921,000. That seems like a rotten deal for the town. If the Old School group really wants the property why don’t they be fair with the town and offer $900,000+ for it? Mr. Bender writes that out of towners “couldn’t care less” about the building (probably a true statement as the building is falling apart and is an eyesore), but with an offer of 10 grand for a million dollar property it seems that the OSCC group could not care less either. Or is there something else going on here?

By: Bob Panek

Bob Panek — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 02:46:08 +0000

Craig,

You’ve been nailing it on the head all along. Contact me if you want to talk: robertpanek@msn.com.

Bob

By: Craig Zuidema

Craig Zuidema — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 22:13:39 +0000

Oh yes, pull the old “come here” thing. Lord forbid someone who has lived all of his life just 30 miles away from Cape Charles (Cape Chuck as I like to fondly call it), pays plenty of RE taxes without any voting rights, and pays plenty of sales taxes in town have a right to say anything. Face it, if you didn’t have many of the “come heres,” there wouldn’t be anything left to “come to.” That is probably just how some may like it. Look at my previous posts and you can see the math will never add up for this to be a community center. So please, spare me the attitude. One thing you may not understand is that you do your cause no good with the lack of civility and tone. If you cared so much about these things, surely you would have done something long before now. So again, spare me the additional “heritage” lesson. Sometimes an outside perspective is exactly what is needed. How will Old School ever come up with the money to make the necessary improvements, maintain the building, staff the center, and keep the lights on? You will never raise enough money for that unless there is an extremely wealthy benefactor. There are already several buildings in town just sitting empty because no one cares enough. If the building was worth $1 million, then someone would pay $1 million. I’ve been in the finance business long enough to know when someone is blowing smoke and that is exactly what is happening. The tax revenue generated from an apartment building like this will provide the return in the long run. Could the town have secured a better deal? Probably. But I would bet that if Old School were to have the building, it would sit empty for several more years before any funds could be raised to get the building back up to code, much less staff and maintain an actual community center. Again, just look at all of the empty buildings in town. [. . . ]

OK — we’ve given both sides their say on an issue that was not even directly addressed in our editorial. Let’s leave it at that, please. -EDITOR

By: Don Bender

Don Bender — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 20:40:33 +0000

It is obvious to me Craig that you are not from Cape Charles. If you were you would not be referring to it as Cape Chuck. The issue of the Old School will be a problem as long as there are people like you. You people move here and couldn’t care less about a building that we went to school in, our fathers went to school in, and maybe a few grandfathers also attended school in. You people that want an apartment building sitting on the edge of our two million dollar park and right beside the children’s playground are the ones with the problem. This town is GIVING AWAY close to a million dollars’ worth of land and you don’t see that as a problem? The people that we pay a salary to have sided with an out of town developer and you don’t see that as a problem? The people we elected to council have gone behind the citizens’ backs with secret meetings to put together this nice little package and you don’t see that as a big deal?

By: Veann Duvall

Veann Duvall — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 20:18:33 +0000

How many historic buildings are out there that are valued at $921,000, that include a basketball court and parking for the children’s playground in the park, that are right beside the park, that belong to the town, that we can fix up to make into a community center?

Does selling a property valued at $921,000 and throwing in an additional $41,000 insurance proceeds, plus giving a $152,000 discount on water hookup seem a little bit odd to you?

One has to wonder why they are doing it.

By: David Gay

David Gay — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 19:16:49 +0000

It is amazing how an article about posting signs on telephone poles has morphed into a discussion on Old School Cape Charles! It seems this is still a hot topic in town. Thank you Craig Zuidema for keeping the subject alive. I agree with you that giving away 7 building lots, a $50,000 insurance payment and 50% reduction of water hookup fees does not make good financial sense. Thanks again for pointing that out.

By: Craig Zuidema

Craig Zuidema — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:26:09 +0000

I sure will be glad when this entire affair regarding the Old School is cleared up and over. While I understand that some people want to see the School coverted to a community center, I have not seen an ounce of anything that makes any financial sense. There are plenty of unused or abandoned buildings and homes in Cape Chuck that could be used as an alternative, and likely more affordable. Chances are, the Old School would just remain another dilapidated building were it not for some interest in developing the property as apartments. Why not spend some time developing the other buildings that have been sitting empty for so long (like right next to CC Coffee House)? This issue has caused a lot of uncivil attitudes on both sides. [. . . ] I think it is time to move on.