Questions for the commissioners

First, I really appreciate that we will still have a place to put our garbage in Bigfork. I appreciate all the people and the time spent resolving the issue.

As a fiscally responsible person, I would like answers to the following questions:

1. How much is the county paying to buy the land they’ve selected? How does this compare to the $2,000/year rent that taxpayers paid for this use before?

2. I understand Solid Waste has a significant amount of excess money that is not used in the day-to-day operations of the department.  Will this money be used towards the land purchase or will ALL of the money for the purchase come from the NEW TAX that is said to be charged to Bigfork residents who already pay taxes for solid waste service?

3. What is the purpose of the county owning property? Is the county in the business of providing services to taxpayers who fund them or of accumulating assets?

I’d appreciate a response from our commissioners. —Beth Morgenstern, Bigfork