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Government Officials should be held accountable for their actions the same as we are.

The August 21st issue of the Pine Cone Press-Citizen had another story of the Cass County Commissioners not doing their job when they denied access for a land locked property.

"I don't know why people can't get along, Commissioner Bob Kangas said..." He also said "They're putting it in our hands and making us the bad guys."

I have news for Mr. Kangas, people do have disagreements and don't always get along. That is why their are laws written that he has sworn an oath to uphold so that there issues can be resolved. Commissioner Neal Gaalswyk appears to me to be the only one who will at least try and do something. If they won't do the job they should resign so someone willing to make the hard decissions can do it. In the words of President Harry Truman, if you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen.

You are not supposed to burden over worked courts and force individuals the added expense just because you don't like being "...the bad guys".

The same situation occureed with me and was reported in the Pine Cone Press-Citizen a few months ago. I filed a complaint with the County Board under Minnesota Statue 163.16. They had prepared a motion which would reject my complaint even before they had held the required hearing and they denied me enough time to present the testimony I had prepared showing I had met every requirement specified by a previous appeal's court ruling. Only Neal Gaalswyk showed any interest in asking questions at that time also. Jeff Peterson stated the board has agreed to stay out of neighborhood disagreements and let the land owners and Townships solve their disagreements. The board made an agreement to ignore their oath of office and not to solve disagreements a person might have with a township.

My lawyer ignored my feelings that we must go to the appeals court because we had not had a proper hearing and no record was kept. I believe that Judge Harrington made the correct decision when he ruled we should have gone to the Court of Appeals as I wanted to do instead of to the District Court; however he did write that in the court case known as Suburban Estate (1977) the following. "On appeal, the Minnesota Supreme Court broadly interpreted Section 163.16 to apply to any town or public road no matter how it is created" Now I must go through the process a second time.

People should be aware that County Zoning requires all platted roads to be built to Township Specifications before the plat is approved without meeting this requirement the township under MS163.16 can be made to maintain the road in a passable condition even if the township does not accept it as township road as long as they are dedicated to the public and used by the public. It is time we make government accountable for their actions when they don't do the job they are suppose to do the same way we are held accountable if we are caught breaking zoning regualations.



Leonard Zimmer

Longville[[In-content Ad]]

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