Taxpayers end up losing if rec center plans cancelled

Dear editor,

Now it seems to me that the "loudest voices in the room" or the most "extreme voices" are winning, and the taxpayers of the Western Elmore County Recreation District are losing.

The new Board Members of the Rec District have seen fit to not only cancel the proposed Rec building across from the Mountain Home Jr. High but to suspend all work and incur a fee of about $14,000 a month paid to the construction company until they make up their minds what to do.

At the January 20 WECRD meeting, Art Nelson was vocal and very plain in stating, "I intend to cancel the construction of the building." The board did not cancel the project but seems content to spend the $14,000 in taxpayer money 'till they break the Rec District financially.

Having signed a petition to dissolve the District that has twice failed to gather enough signatures to succeed, the loudest voices, AKA two new board members, apparently plan to ignore pleas from the public to see their plan or their financial proof that a rec building can never succeed. Both board members' signatures remain on the petition to dissolve the District.

Okay, so the Board does cancel the contract and that ends the monthly fee of $14,000, then what? As of December 8, 2015, it was estimated that Kreizenbeck Constructors would demand and get over $340,000 to terminate the contract.

Over $570,000 has been spent so far to build the rec center out of $4,000,000 to complete it. Currently there is about $3.7 million on hand. Termination penalties, plus monies spent, is about $1,000,000, folks -- your tax money!

The Idaho Tax Commission told me to e-mail my concerns to taxrep@taxidaho.com.

-- Richard A. Foster,

Mountain Home