Letter: An open letter to the GOP Precinct Committee members
On Friday, January 16, thirteen GOP Precinct Committee members will be gathering to select the next mayor of Jasper.
As a resident of Cass Township, I will have no voice in the selection, but your decision will affect my future and that of hundreds of your fellow citizens.
The next mayor of Jasper will have a voice on the issue that will fundamentally change Dubois County forever. Governor Mike Braun and his allies claim it will change for the better. The overwhelming majority of Dubois County residents beg to disagree.
The Mid-States Corridor will destroy many homes, farms, forests, and wetlands for an estimated 3 minutes of time savings to Indianapolis and a vague promise that it will attract new business to the county many years from now. In exchange for this, the City of Jasper, which already has a budget strained by cuts in property tax revenue, will assume maintenance of the current US 231, which the state has not been properly maintaining due to its own budget shortfalls.
The Governor’s political machine will undoubtedly put tremendous pressure on you to select the candidate for mayor that they feel will help shepherd this project through to completion. According to the recently released Public Policy Polling poll, 87% of Dubois County residents want all candidates to clearly state their position on the Mid-States Corridor and 77% would be somewhat or strongly less likely to vote for a candidate who supports the Corridor. We, the citizens of Dubois County, ask that you respect this poll and ask all candidates to clearly state whether they support or oppose the Corridor and consider their answer when you make your choice.
If the Corridor is built, hundreds of Dubois County residents will lose homes and property that they have built their lives around, sometimes for generations. These families have already been under emotional strain for years because of this project, and your decision could add to or help relieve that strain.
Please take this into consideration when you make your choice for the next mayor of Jasper. Remember that your choice not only affects hundreds of your fellow citizens, but will need to be a decision that you can live with for the rest of your life.
Tom Bartelt
Huntingburg
