Observations from the Public hearing. 6/28/1

Ever since the public hearing I've been perplexed by those in the audience who somehow have gotten the idea that we are against farmers and want to change Preble. What's odd about this is that the opposite is true. Everything we have done has been to maintain the rural nature of Preble and protect the laws that protect the farmers and everyone else. Someone is telling these people things about us that are just not true. If they took the time to examine the facts they would conclude that they have been misled or worse.

Lets look at this business of rezoning. The Preble town board along with the ZBA and planning board of both Preble and Cortland spent 5 years developing the laws that now protect Preble from uncontrolled growth. It is these very laws that the town board is now trying to go around. Most curious is that there is no need to rezone Knapp's land to get what he wants, or what he says he wants. As a matter of fact if he would drop the rezone and just went with a different appraiser such as the one we provided he would be well on his way to getting the farmland protection money. We do not object to any and all farmers getting into that program, we think it is a good idea. So why doesn't Knapp take the easy road? We don't have a logical answer to that and that is why we think the rezone is a ruse for something else.

Meanwhile the town board is determined to go ahead with the rezone despite knowing they will be sued and very likely lose. Judge Rumsey has upheld Preble's laws twice now and shows no signs of doing anything different. It makes no sense to continue on this path unless there is something they plan to do that we haven't figured out yet.

If Paul Knapp wants to get into the farmland protection then all he has to do is change appraisers and poof he's done. He could have this part of the process done in a week! Doing it the rezone way will take 6 months or more and it will likely fail. Then he will have to go with a different appraiser. Why waste 6 months? Why pay a lawyer all that money just to end up where he would be in a week now? Makes no sense to me.

Frank Hogg