Say what?

The front page of this paper looks like a shooting gallery for an editorial writer.

Let's start with Cabinet View Country Club: Bravo!

Now let's look at the city council decision to grant a variance for no obvious reason than the developer requested one. The city ordinance says city streets should be 40 feet. Consider this: nearly everyone who visits here says two things about the city — it's located in a beautiful setting (They never say it's a beautiful city) and we have nice wide streets.

Jim Beasley, developer of Creek View Estates, wanted a 24-foot paved street and he got it, without having to give up anything or give something to the city. He's proposing a development of 61 lots on 19 acres of land presently outside city limits but he needs city water and sewer to do his project.

Cities who have their acts together understand that when a developer needs the city — as in this case — they are in a position of control. What could the city ask? For the developer not to pass on future expenses to the city, for a starter. For instance, who is going to enforce the fact there is no parking on the paved portion of the street? Not Beasley. And the council could have, at the very least, asked for a lot or two for the development of a small city park for playground equipment.

If we're not going to stick by city ordinances, they should be stricken from the books — both the street width ordinance and the variance ordinance. Variances aren't usually handed out like chewing gum. They are given for specific reasons, usually dealing with hardships.

Enough said, it easily explains why people prefer to live outside the city limits.

The old high school. Deja vu. It's decision time. If they decide to sell, the trustees need to see a viable development plan, timetable and bonded contractor. If they decide not sell, they have to propose a plan with timetable.

Finally the embattled Libby Library. There's just something wrong with the idea of covering chrysotile asbestos floor tiles with carpet in a community where so many people are fighting with the EPA to remove carpet from homes being cleaned of tremolite asbestos. It's hard to believe that the library floor won't have to have some kind of sealer between the contaminant and the new carpet.

It's a good thing we moved the children's reading room into a room where the carpet is covering good ol' wooden subflooring. We couldn't have them crawling on the floor in the older portion of the building. — Roger Morris