Thanks, Debbie!

This morning's editorial column, "It's a shelter, not corporate welfare" by Jeff Webb in the Hernando Times hit the nail on the head. After the last several days of negative news articles and radio frenzy, it was time to turn down the volume and put some sanity into this serious issue confronting Hernando County. Does anyone recall the large number of deaths in nursing facilities during Hurricane Katrina? We certainly do not need a tragedy like the one seen in New Orleans here at home. Who will take care of the most fragile citizens in our county in the event of a disaster? The answer is we all should be responsible for the most vulnerable of our society.

This morning at the BCC meeting, Garth Coller clarified the use of public funds for this special needs shelter, saying it was for a public purpose to protect the special needs of citizens during hurricanes. Our community needs to move forward on this project and certainly does not need any further misrepresentation of the facts by interim Commissioner Hogan. Tom Leto, Emergency Management Coordinator indicated that a special needs shelter of this caliber will certainly be state mandated in the very near future so Hernando County will be ahead of the curve with minimal investment.

Oak Hill is graciously donating the land, along with recurring costs, for the Enrichment Center to development this special needs shelter. The one time investment by the county of $400K will be recouped in Ad Valorem taxes paid by Oak Hill Hospital. Debbie Walker-Druzbik is working tirelessly to lobby private business for their contributions to make this project a reality. Senator Mike Fasano was recently quoted as saying, the $400,000 pledged by the board of county commissioners is a necessary expense that will certainly benefit the most vulnerable residents. Many community and government leaders have jumped on board to get this project off the ground like CCA, the builders association, the mining association and Coastal Engineering. Thanks, Debbie, for your hard work on this project!