Coming Soon

As we slept, there were allegedy six break ins last night. What a way to start 2015. If this mayor and board does not realize the need for police officers and continue to make cuts in the public safety department, this city is going to become a bastion of lawlessness. At every meeting, they say the public works department is doing good; financially. But when I read the comments on the Lumberton Informer Facebook page, it seems that most citizens are not pleased with the public works department or the city clerk. Over and over again, there are complaints about misread water meters and over inflated water bills. I said in an earlier post that the outrageous bills and antiquated method of checking meters benefits the water department; allowing them to have five employees on payroll and that includes a part time employee. Now, how can we have a budget crisis but one department is fully staffed but not making any sewer repairs, not collecting garbage, not reading meters, and they have a brand new dump truck but won't pick up tree branches or white goods for the residents of Lumberton unless they pay an additional fee. Keep in mind, the truck was paid for by the citizens of Lumberton but the public works director refuses to provide any services free of charge. There's complaints about how much gas is used by tbe police department but nothing is said about the three trucks in the public works department that's constantly moving five days a week. What are they doing? If you don't think police are needed, ask those that fell victim to the band of thieves roaming Lumberton, going to and fro, looking to see who they can devour. Thieves know there's only one officer on patrol. The other night, they were so bold, they went onto a person's carport, stole a riding mower, leaf blower and a child's bike. There's no honor among thieves and they know this city is not adequately protected. I can almost guarantee they are working in groups. There's probably someone watching the police officers and texting the location to their fellow criminals.

Before going to bed last night, I was brainstorming ideas that would let the governing body of Lumberton know we are serious and they must change their way of thinking. The one thought that kept coming to mind was the water bill. This board and the board before them never addressed the billing errors in tne wayer department. Also, this current board managed to get 15 months behind in payments on a DEQ loan; that's a $150,000 deficit tnis board cannot explain. Please note, the money to pay this loan is supposed to come from money collected through water bills. The citizens are paying their bills but those collecting the payments are not paying the bills. That's not hearsay or my opinion, it's a fact. In my rebellious mind, I thought the citizens of Lumberton should stop paying their water bills for a few months. Then I realized that wasn't a good idea. I wouldn't want to be the cause of people having their water cut off. My next thought was to get citizens to pay a portion of their billd but that would result in late fees. I don't know how many radical thinkers are out there but I know the public works department had about 50 locks and when they turn off a customer's water, they're suppose to put a lock on the meter. I know they can't turn off everyone's water but it would be interesting to see how they decide which accounts get shut off first. As you can see, I haven't found a way to convey our displeasure with the board without causing inconvenience for the citizens. I guess, for now, we're just going to have to make sure the meetings are standing room only, and look them square in the eyes as they continue to run this vity into the ground.

Now to end on a more positive note, the Looney Rooster is scheduled to open Monday, January 5, 2015. They will be serving Southern style lunch and dinners. Some of the staples on the menu will be fried chicken, pork chops, country fried steaks, ham, turnip greens, butter beans, blackeyed peas, mac n cheese, tater casserole, and peach cobbler. I hope everyone stop by and support a person that is trying to make Lumberton a better place, one plate at a time.