Erlenbush answers editorial (4/15/04)

I noticed your article in Monday’s edition of The Commercial Review, and it warrants the following reply.

It is imperative to point out, first of all, that no one from The Commercial Review contacted me before this article was run to get any factual information from the source that would know it best. With that being said, first and foremost, let me state unequivocally that there has never been any attempt to hide anything from anyone in regard to Redkey town business. The headline states this as the case, and it could not be further from the truth.

The very purpose of an audit is to find problems and assist one in outlining ways to prevent future problems. This state audit was not done with any criminal intent in mind, nor was any found. To be fair you pointed this out, but the headline does not lead one to conclude this.

To answer just a few of your allegations with fact, allow me to outline the following:

1. The Build Indiana fund was indeed paid back in full as you said, but there was nothing capricious about it at all. It was fully outlined and voted on publicly in our February regularly-scheduled town board meeting by all five sitting board members, and the vote was unanimous to fully pay back the fund and disclose doing so. It is imperative to point out that all money was indeed spent on the park, even before this issue came up.

2. The issue of water billing arrearage has been well documented in regular meetings, and the problem is being addressed. The main issue here is the system, or total lack thereof, that our clerk has to deal with.

This problem was inherited by this board and is being taken care of. There has been a public process to submit bids for a computer system which will streamline and automate this process. As it stands now, it is totally manual, and it is very easy to have long-standing arrearages.

As I’m sure most citizens are aware, the systems that will address this are expensive, and cost real money, which is not always easy to come up with in a small town. The bid stands at around $15,000 to upgrade and automate this process, and it will be done. This also has been very publicly discussed and voted on in our regular scheduled meetings.

I, as town board president, am not going to try to say that there have not been mistakes made, but feel compelled to point out that what has been discovered is indeed being dealt with in proper and due form.

If our actions satisfy the Indiana State Auditors, I fail to see why we do not rise to the level which will satisfy the editor of a local newspaper which would better serve the public of our county by assisting a neighboring town, rather than cutting it down.

We are still an integral part of the county, and the sooner we get this town back on track in many ways we will be a more productive and valuable asset to the county as a whole. If we all work together for continued progress, we may see more economic development countywide, and this should, and will, include Redkey if I have anything to do with it.

I inherited a lot of infrastructure and personnel problems with this job and rest assured, I am doing my best to work with the citizens and the board to rectify our problems and put us on the right track.

It will take the teamwork of all of us as citizens to accomplish this, and perhaps even a good word from our local newspaper now and again.

The public’s business is indeed public in Redkey, and is discussed and voted on openly in our town board meetings which are, of course, open to the public.

Sincerely and respectfully submitted,

Violet Erlenbush, president

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