Tony Scott Speaks For the Taxpayers, Not the Trees

Before Thursday night's Northampton County Council meeting, I stepped out in the hall and saw the Nature Conservancy's Ellen Lott and all her supporters, girding themselves for battle. They were there to demand that Council change course ... again, and fund two swampland purchases with dubious appraisals. In addition to speaking for the trees, Lott was instructing various people about when they should speak, and what they should say. She was most concerned about how to counter the damage done by two Upper Mount Bethel Township residents, Carol and Anthoni Scott.

The Scotts were at home, unaware that their efforts two weeks ago were about to be undone. In Upper Mount Bethel Township, they were actually ejected from an open space committee meeting that discussed specific parcels. They've been denied Right-to-Know requests for a list of people who have applied for public money in exchange for a cliff here or a swamp there.

Although the Scotts were bushwhacked, they did it themselves two weeks before.

Now I have no problem buying the occasional swamp, if the price is fair. This deal was unfair to the taxpayers, as Tony Scott himself states below:

"The latest re-reversal of the Northampton County Council's decision to fund acquisition of the Kirkridge and Broad properties without a second appraisal value is yet another example of the spineless lack of leadership in our elected officials who buckle to the weight of numbers, bleeding-heart liberal extremist environmentalists and the like, not logic.


"Mr. and Mrs. Scott and County Councilman Ron Angle, wished ONLY that these properties got a fair appraisal value. As was eloquently stated by NCC's spokesperson, Ms. Ann McHale, 'Someone else's lack of planning should not be someone else's problem'. This statement speaks volumes.


"Mr. Edmond Turtzo ( 1-610-[redacted]) informed me these properties could have been re-appraised at a cost to him of around $350 per property. Mr. Turtzo is a real estate appraiser that lives in the area, has more experience that the Nature Conservancy 'independent' appraiser, and is Pennsylvania State Certified. To spend hundreds of thousands of tax payers dollars on properties without a second appraisal is an typical example of contempt for the tax-payer and is an perfect reason why such monies should be denied to those bodies such as the Open Space Committee and 'Those that speak for the trees'.


"Although there are those that may enjoy the fleeting moment of a victory in a long series of future tax payer battles to come, this battle may be won but their war will be lost. The taxpayer needs to know how his or her tax money is to be spent. Again, the survey respondents will have their EIT tax money wishes spent in the way they wished, not what the Open Space Committee thinks they want, or it will be removed."

Tony and I are probably jealous because the trees don't hug us back.