To the editor:

I strongly support Douglas County Commissioner Charles Jones in his call for public input before county endorsement of the Haskell-Baker Wetlands mitigation plan (LJW Sept. 19) for these reasons:

1. The proposed mitigation is directly linked to the highly controversial 32nd Street alignment of the South Lawrence Trafficway, therefore,

2. Endorsement of the mitigation by the county is an unofficial endorsement of the 32nd Street alignment, and,

3. Submitting this endorsement within the Corps of Engineers Sept. 30 deadline for public comment on the SLT alignment issue delivers a message to the Corps (in competition with public comment) that Douglas County accepts the 32nd Street alignment,

4. Rushing county endorsement only serves to achieve the objectives in 2 and 3 above, while bypassing meaningful public input.

The SLT is a highway that seems to be supported primarily by developers, contractors and other business interests who don’t much care about the quality of life in this community beyond economic growth and their own personal gain. And when our local government commissions are comprised predominantly of people with strong business ties, the average citizen feels disenfranchised.

Our political representatives have a responsibility to accommodate and assimilate public input, especially regarding controversial issues, and especially if representatives have vested interests (or even the appearance of vested interest) in the issue at hand. Rushing endorsement of the wetlands mitigation for a 32nd Street SLT does not meet that responsibility. Nor does it serve this community with the respect and consideration that we deserve from our representatives.

Sharon Dewey,

Lawrence