Dear Friends of Keep Polston Public: Wow! Things have started heating up! This process has provided an opportunity to open dialogue surrounding transparency within our local leadership as well as vision and planning for the future of our city. We have been examining economic development with its many models and philosophies. Both "sides" want our community to be economically better off, and we all want to support small business. We believe there is not one simple way to accomplish these goals and that it will require thinking "outside the box" to usher us into a prosperous future. Perhaps most importantly, we have been discussing how and why we care for each other and in particular, how we care for our children. We hope that these debates and discussions though difficult will bring our community together and make us stronger in the long run. Alongside the broader community process, we also have a lawsuit in progress which will allow the court to look closely at the school board decision to sell the property to Dan Russell for 255,000 less then appraised value. We believe the School Board violated the Open Meetings Act, the Sunshine Laws and their fiduciary duties in their decision making process. It is important to keep in mind that this lawsuit is not an attack on any individual, nor a desire to divide our tight knit community, it is an attempt to shed light on a flawed decision making process on the part of the Alamosa Board of Education. We believe it is important to address this lack of transparency with strength and conviction, as it will have far reaching results for future decisions made for the children in our community. At an emergency hearing on Friday, the judge granted exceptional relief in the form of a Temporary Restraining Order prohibiting Russell from any further activity on the property or resale of the property or water rights, until the plaintiffs’ request for Preliminary Injunction, can be heard at a hearing set for August 20th. Additionally Mr. Russell was unable to put in a parking lot, as it was not an allowed use by the county code 2.3.2. The plaintiffs felt it was necessary to stop his work on the property when he pulled out a permit to put in a pole barn in order that the property be preserved until the courts decide the merits of the case, which have not been determined as of yet. We believe this case has merits but we cannot do this alone. We need your help to ensure that the entities that represent us as citizens do so in a transparent manner. You may ask, “How can I help?” and there are many ways you can help this cause: 1. MONEY. First and foremost we need money to pay our attorney. The plaintiffs and various other great folks helped us with the first $5000 plus a $5000 bond for the recent restraining order. Our goal is to match that with a community effort! These plaintiffs have really committed themselves and their financial resources to change the way business is done through the Alamosa School Board. Our attorney is stretching each dollar through cutting his rate as well as donating his time. We need your help as well! Each hour you pay for at $125 per hour will help us reach this goal. You can send a check made out to Alpern Myers Stuart LLC and send it/ bring it to Liza Marron at the SLV Local Foods Office, 613 4th St. Unit A, Alamosa, Colorado 81101 and we will deposit it in the trust account that will be used for litigation fees. 2. COME TO COMMUNITY MEETINGS. We will have regular community meetings. Come to them, express your ideas, help us market our cause to the community. Show up at city council and county commissioner meetings and at court on August 20th to observe what happens with the Preliminary Injunction. We will keep you abreast of these meetings on the Keep Polston Public Website and through e-mails. If you need phone calls, please let us know
Posted on: Tue, 13 Aug 2013 07:36:17 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015