..."I know all about "wet"."
Posted on 02/22/2012 4:29:00 AM PST by csvset
NEWPORT NEWS — It might have been the most expensive mowing job in city history — as Newport News is now paying $950,000 to buy a property it shouldn't have mowed.
This weedy tale began in summer 2010, when City Farm inmates on a work detail for the Codes Compliance Department mistakenly mowed property off of Jefferson Avenue. The city was responding to a high weeds complaint, but did not realize that the 37-acre property in Denbigh was protected wetlands, officials said.
"After the fact, we found out that it was wetlands and we shouldn't have mowed it," said Harold Roach, the city's codes compliance director.
Newport News this week purchased the property for $950,000, partly due to the five acres that are needed to secure the legal right-of-way to build Atkinson Boulevard, a new $52 million road that will connect Warwick Boulevard and Jefferson Avenue by extending Atkinson Way from Warwick to Jefferson.
But also factoring into the city's decision to purchase the land was the mow job, officials said.
City Engineer Everett Skipper said once Newport News mowed the land, it became responsible for monitoring the wetlands on the property, which was owned by NewDunn Associates.
Skipper said the city was on the hook to pay at least $7,000 per year for the next several years for wetlands monitoring, which includes taking an inventory of the plants and shrubs, checking the water levels and testing the water chemistry of the site. Newport News could have also been required to pay NewDunn Associates for other costs, Skipper said.
When asked whether the city would have purchased the entire 37 acres — or just the five acres needed for the Atkinson Boulevard right-of-way — had the property not been mistakenly mowed, Skipper said it "would have been a tough call."
(Excerpt) Read more at dailypress.com ...
What a scam.
Obviously someone is getting a kickback somewhere.
..."I know all about "wet"."
Is it any wonder that our country is going to hell in a hand basket?
I have lived my entire life close to the water, and I can say without doubt, that mowing that land didn’t harm a thing, In a month the grasses that grow close to the waters edge would have come back up as thick as ever, maybe thicker.
taking an inventory of the plants and shrubs,...I want that job. “ Yup, weed here, #25, weed here, #26, Shrub here,#60...).
Another taxpayer bails out private developer update!
This is not nearly severe enough a penalty. The meddling leftists have stepped in their own trap and need to be removed from office.
Had to talk with some Colonel in Buffalo NY. When I hung up, I called him by his first name to "stick it to him".
Don’t forget the photographs. And make sure you get a photo of the wheeping willow for your report.
“We are on the hook for $7k per year, so let's spend $950,000 instead.”
Bwahahaha! Government enforced labor causes purchase of government protected land with...your money.
It is simply not possible for these guys to have failed to notice that this was a protected wetland ~ that's a COMMON condition all around Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries ~ no one is that stupid!
This is a problem with allowing New Yorkers to move to Virginia ~ they see a protected wetland and think it's a bunch of weeds and start whining. I'd track down the complainant and stick her with the cost!
Here in Michigan, weeds grow back really, really fast....
The Ocean goes up and down twice a day ~ nothing you can do about it, and not all shorelines are white sand beaches.
When the "Wetlands" canard doesn't work, they'll find some goofy slug or insect or animal that is declared "Endangered" and stop useage of land one way or another.
Last, but certainly not least, is the over-used Declarations of vast areas as "National Park Land" by the BLM, to prevent useage, mostly in cases of mineral deposits interfering with a Donor's interest, and eliminating competition. This is what has happened in the Energy business (no drilling or mining), the logging industry, pipeline building, etc.
FOLLOW THE MONEY!
You know, there is a map of New York’s Central Park that claims to have every tree and large shrub identified by species and located on the correct place via GPS coordinates. Beautiful artwork. Reminds me of the beauty end existential pointlessness of the Hindu sandworks. Must be a real pain to take inventory after every storm.
In America, before the communists took over, a wetland was called a swamp.
“Obviously someone is getting a kickback somewhere.”
My guess is former Mayor Joe Frank is involved.
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