Recurring Problems

Regarding the recent article, “Beach Road Construction Stirs Residents,” I would like to know just where the comment came from which was attributed to Pat Hockers: “Pat Hockers, committee member and owner of Hockers Excavating, traveled down the road and saw about nine trees that would be slated for the wood chipper, not including dead ones.”

Either the author, Jackson Parr, misheard and misquoted Mr. Hockers or Pat Hockers is lying through his teeth, as his estimate of only nine trees, “not including dead ones,” is so inane and so deceptive as to be ludicrous. This is the kind of misinformation that drives us permanent residents of Liberty Grove nuts because it seeks to allay the fears of the snowbirds until after they have departed from the area and cannot see the devastation, which will be occurring after they have left. Only the stumps will be visible next spring, and the canopy that used to exist along Beach Road will be but a fading memory. When those trees are gone, they will be gone forever.

I am assuming that Mr. Hockers was quoted correctly, and if this is the case, then it once again brings up bad memories from the recent past. Many of us have witnessed past campaigns of misinformation propagated by the Town and the Highway Committee under Chairman Mike Walker beginning with the resurfacing of Isle View Road three years ago and Garrett Bay Road last year. Mr. Walker promotes Garrett Bay Road as a success story, but that is hardly the way that many residents feel. Our view is to revel in the canopy and cut the speed limit, but others want to strip the trees and widen the shoulders so that cars can drive faster.

I drove down Beach Road yesterday, and I counted 111 trees which are slated to be cut because they are marked with the orange dot of death. A few of these trees may already be dead, but there is no way that this number bears any resemblance to the nine trees as quoted in the article. I also heard from a resident of Beach Road this evening that the total number of trees slated for removal totals 168.

It would have been nice if your reporter had questioned that lowball number of just nine trees for three miles of road. Of course, it would even be better of the residents and property owners would be given factual information and not a bunch of hooey from a member of the Liberty Grove Highway Committee who has a huge conflict of interest in being a supplier to Liberty Grove for all of the road work that is undertaken.

Every year for the past three years the Town Electors of Liberty Grove at the November Annual Meeting have voted in favor of preventing persons who have a serious conflict of interest from serving on Town Committees, and every year the Town Board under President Lowry ignores this vote. That is just how business is being conducted up here.

Carl Zapffe
Ellison Bay, Wis.
August 27th, 2015