To the Editor:

First we lost the police. Not that it was necessary. Mr. Green had COVID funds ($180,000) that could’ve been spent on the police to cover the $150,000 “shortfall.” At the time, no one knew he’d received those funds. Wonder why he didn’t tell anyone?

Next, a vote to increase taxes to bridge the $150,000 police funding shortfall occurred; thus, a special election — keep in mind, the COVID funds would’ve easily kept the JD police going until the regular voting cycle was scheduled. Increasing taxes, even though not necessary, might’ve even passed if the special election was held during the normal voting cycle. Sadly, the funds existed and the vote was unnecessary, but the JD police were dissolved expeditiously.

Then Mr. Green received the $375,000 police funding grant. Yet his rush to dissolve the JDPD eliminated any option of those funds being applied.

Was it by chance, maybe “coincidence,” the police went away (as one JDCC member exclaimed about the pool being demolished as just “coincidence” before the vote on the levy)? Does it strike you as, maybe, “engineered” and not “coincidence”?

Weirdly, there will now be a third(!) vote on the pool, yet nothing on the police. Ask yourself, “Who is doing this engineering of the electorate’s vote?” What are their priorities? The electorate’s, or their bonus?

Now we have JDCC members who have exclusive benefits of advertising on the Discover John Day web page; not one other local business is listed on that website. Ask yourself, Why? And one who was awarded, as well, the single choice lot for their new facility on the John Day River without it ever having been competitively bid on. Sweetheart deal, or what?

Sadly, these people (and one’s paid quite handsomely), attack those who have a different opinion. Clearly, they don’t work for us, they work for themselves. It’s high time to take back our city of John Day.

Dwaine H. Winchester

John Day