To the Editor:

There is some confusion and debate over the purpose of the Public Access Advisory Board. I must first give credit to all those members who gave their own time, travel expenses and initiative to take on this situation.

I was at the County Court meeting when this was first proposed. Their job was to investigate what roads had been closed by the U.S. Forest Service, and whether these roads were closed before or after the Grant County ordinance prohibiting any closures without the County Court and the county sheriff’s consent.

It was soon apparent that in September 2014, former Forest Service Supervisor Teresa Raaf had signed a road closure order for some 214 roads in the southern portion of Grant County, without any notice or correspondence with the Court or the sheriff. This was well after Grant County Ordinance 2013-1 went into effect.

This law is a no-brainer. It is an easy read. The current forest supervisor has stated he will obey the law. There is some concern the road closure problem may affect the timber harvest. This seems like coercion or extortion, and something we need to avoid.

I do not believe our county sheriff has been consulted on any of these closures, and he is the most important voice in all of this – for no other reason than safety, and search and rescue.

In conclusion: Come on people – get to the table and work these things out. It is not rocket science. It is the law.

Gary Jacobson

Prairie City