An open letter to the citizens of Jackson Township
To the editor:
Folks, our Jackson Township Trustees – Chad Frazer, Brad Hart and Steve Edingfield – really need, and want, your input – now.
They need your input on the Fire/EMS service issue with the city of Hillsboro.
Our trustees want to know what you want them to do about the Fire/EMS service.
If you will contact them with your input now, they can finally make a decision and get on with all the other township business that has been stalled by the unending Fire/EMS sales pitch from the city of Hillsboro.
Paint and Hamer townships have chosen to reject the city of Hillsboro and it's very likely Washington and New Market townships will, too. In just a couple of weeks, all of those townships will have gotten their residents free of the city’s constant dramas and back to running their townships for their own benefit.
Jackson Township can, too. If that is what you want.
But folks, our trustees have to hear from you. They don’t have a very good, effective way to “come to you” for the information. But you can easily pick up the phone or send a letter or an email letting them know your thoughts. They plan and will announce a “public input” meeting soon and, hopefully, a lot of you will be able to attend. But if you can’t, please try to contact some other way. Soon.
All of our choices for Fire/EMS after this year are going to cost noticeably more than they have in the past. Our trustees can’t escape that. The primary issues are: Do we want our money invested in our township’s interest and property or put in the pockets of the city’s $80,000-a-year union firemen with us having nothing tangible at all to show for our money later?
Secondly, do we want to do business with upright people whom we can trust and offer us the stability we need to plan our budgets or with a group that has proven themselves very troublesome for us for several years now?
If you want to join a township fire district (Mowrystown, for example), please let our trustees know that. If you want to join the new district the city thinks it can form, please let our trustees know that.
If you prefer real value and security and are willing to pay a reasonable price for it, please tell our trustees that. If you just want the cheapest way possible, say so.
If you aren’t sure and would like our tTrustees to cull out all the “red herring” arguments and simply explain the meaningful pros and cons to you, they’ll be happy to. But you have to get to them…and please do it soon.
If you don’t help our trustees now, December will be here in a flash and the city will soon have our trustees pinned up against another deadline. And then the only thing our trustees will be able to do to continue coverage is join the city completely on the city’s terms.
Whatever your opinion is in this matter, PLEASE contact our trustees now and let them know what you think should be done. They want to hear from you because they are trying to do something for your benefit. Please help them. Please speak up.
Many thanks,
Jim Moore
Jackson Township