Rowan County needs its farmland
I call upon our Rowan County Commissioners to set funds aside for farmland preservation! Don’t let our land slip away! For a quality life, we are dependent on clean air, clean water and food. Everything else pales in comparison! When our land is gone, where will we grow our food? Will we import it all? How much more pollution can we stand? We know that grass, trees and land help keep our air cleaner and protect our water.
For every $1 of tax revenue development creates, it costs the county $1.30 to service it. Agricultural land, on the other hand, only requires 50 cents of service for every $1 of tax revenue. We could put funds into farmland preservation but still save taxpayers’ money at the same time.
Rowan County does raise a lot of food and is one of the top producers of hay and cattle in the state. Our farmers have annual receipts of $42.5 million. Our county needs this industry!
Most of our farmers are just barely holding on due to low returns and high cost of equipment! Many don’t know how much longer they can survive! You don’t get rich farming, but our farmers love the land and want to preserve it for the future!
Farmland preservation is beneficial for everyone, as breathing clean air, drinking decent water and eating are not options!
Our county is discussing land planning, but it can change as ideas change, and some things would not be permanent. But when land is put into the farmland preservation program , it is permanent! It is a voluntary plan and does not infringe on private property rights.
I call upon our county commissioners to do what is right for our future before our land is gone!
ó Barbara C. Earnhardt
Salisbury
Say no to a toll
Regarding replacement of the Yadkin River Bridge on Interstate 85:
After living in this county the last 13 years, I would like to offer some input on this subject. This bridge is old, and I do not like to drive across it due to its width, as well as the volume and speed of the traffic that it handles. I go through Spencer to cross the river. Many of my friends also do so.
The suggestion that the only way to finance a replacement is through creation of a toll road is an insult to the residents of North Carolina and this locality. Our state coffers ought to be overflowing with income from our gas tax. The last article that I read said that “30.15 cents/gallon tax” went to the N.C. DOT. This figure may or may not be current, but it reflects the amount of revenue the state receives. That’s a lot of money. Is the N.C. DOT spending these monies in areas based upon need or upon political influence?
I grew up in Richmond, Va. Next month I will be 54. How many of you can recall taking I-85 to 95 and going through the Richmond area? All those stops to pay tolls were a pain to the wallet as well as a concern during both good and inclement weather. After many years, these are now gone; traffic flows faster and more safely. Do we need to go back to the past or move forward to the future?
Do we need to follow bad examples or should we require that the N.C. DOT spend our tax monies based upon need rather than politics?
Say no to a toll road. Tell your representatives to get off their duffs and do things the right way. Or we will find people who can and will.
ó William D. McCranie
Salisbury
Pleased with staff
In a world where it seems easier to criticize than to compliment, I for one, would like to stand up for the staff at our children’s two schools.
Our experience with both Overton and Knox has been wonderful. The front office staff at both schools has always been friendly and accommodating whenever I/we are there.
On occasions when I might have needed to meet with the principal, there has never been a problem at either school. The principals and front office staff at both schools have consistently met our needs in a timely and friendly manner.
Before placing blame on an entire school administration, perhaps examining your own attitude might be helpful.
Kindness is an easy seed to grow if both parties are willing to tend the garden.
ó Ann Bourque
Salisbury
A better alternative for the White House
“There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.” Henry David Thoreau wrote that, and I believe it is referring to my candidate for the presidency ó the only one who is striking at the root of America’s problems, Tom Millican (www.tommillican.com).
The freedoms of America laid out in America’s Constitution are worth defending regardless of the cost and it is, I believe, our duty to defend them against all attackers. Our freedom as spelled out in America’s Constitution is our inheritance from our Founding Fathers. It would be unforgivable of us if we should lose them by violence without a fight, or to be tricked out of them by those who dangle globalization in front of us.
How many of you have lost your jobs do to these globalists? The globalists are working toward world-wide free trade at your and my expense. You and I have paid for globalization with the loss of our jobs, the very jobs that we planned our lives and our futures around. We believed that our elected officials were looking out for our best interest, but it was only their interest that mattered.
Now they come back to us vowing to “change.” How can we believe them when the majority of those running are members or immediate past members of the lowest-rated Congress and Senate in the history of America?
Show your intelligence get behind Tom Millican and help him become the first citizen president since George Washington.
ó R.G. Rhyne
Maiden