Commissioner Klemm | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: In the communicative vein of Warren Smith's Dear Commissioners diatribe, we have the more direct approach expressed to the Beaufort County EDC's most loyal fan, and county commissioner, Al Klemm.

    The industrial parks have incurred capital ($6.5 million) and current ($3.5 million) costs of $330,000 per job created (30 jobs). Inclusion of the River Road "claw-back" versus jobs does little to improve this result. The nonsense surrounding ethanol, plastics and wood chips have been of further cost to taxpayers.

    Does it strike you that when commentators survey and tally the awful waste of money various projects have suffered nationally that your unplanned, unbudgeted and unsupervised ten year portfolio of EDC disasters exceeds even the worst losses reported from across the nation.

    You have been more deeply associated with the EDC program than any other commissioner. You were Mr. Thompson's staunch supporter, the firmest voice in defending the delay in selling the Quick Start II building, the commissioner most derogatory toward EDC critics and the very last commissioner to admit to how badly checks and balances were mishandled at the EDC. It has taken you seven months to arrive at an incomplete four-page draft of revised EDC bylaws.

    With all due respect, you should step down from any further involvement with economic development. Your EDC tenure already exceeds the two terms mentioned in the bylaws and the county certainly deserves a new approach.

    Regards,

    Warren Smith
      Beaufort County