The Bradford County Board of County Commissioners met this morning, Feb. 6, 2017 in the Bradford County Courthouse in Starke. Of interest to those following the mine issue in Union/Bradford Counties is the news that the commissioners chose Monday, March 20, at 6:30 pm, to host the Alachua county commissioners in a joint meeting in Starke.
The mine will not be on the agenda, but note that after the meeting, the county manager and the county attorney did tell your historian that, even though not on the agenda, it might possibly be discussed. So this might be a good time to attend this Monday night meeting, and remind the commissioners that the mine is not good for the Santa Fe River, nor the schools, nor Bradford County, nor Florida, nor the world.
Your historian spoke today against the mine, as did Kate Ellison from Melrose. She read quotes from Mr. Jack Hazen’s letter which was made public at a town hall meeting last spring, and which appeared online. Kate believes that the promises and insinuations in Mr. Hazen’s letter are more fantasy than fact, and we agree, as we have seen nothing to bear him out. What we have seen from his company leans toward the opposite, as we note the infractions, fines, rule-breaking and corner-cutting since this operation became public just about a year ago.
Comments by OSFR historian Jim Tatum.
-A river is like a life: once taken, it cannot be brought back-