Letter to the Editor: Save Employees Along with County Parks

Have you been on the roller coaster ride the last several weeks concerning the closing of 23 St. Louis County Parks and laying off 173 employees? The county executive just announced there would be and emphasized a team effort to the problem.  

How come there was no team effort before they started this wild ride? Even a member of the parks board stated at a council meeting that the board was not aware of any action to close parks.

It's a shame that it took residents signing petitions, handing out flyers at the various parks, speaking at the County Council meetings and voicing their displeasure about the closure to bring “team effort” and “compromise” to our elected officials when they all stated they did not want to close parks.  

Is there no communication between the County Executive and his Council members on matters of such importance before making a decision?

Now we are only faced with in addition to the 71 unfilled and slated for removal in 2012 and no park closures.  

The park employees have been working under severe budget cuts and without raises for several years, struggling to keep our parks open in good condition.  How would you like to be an employee working under the constant stress of losing your job or facing several more years without a raise?

County Executive and Council members, please use your new found “team effort” and “compromise” to fix this issue once and for all.

Thanks to the Mehlville-Oakville Patch editors for their comprehensive coverage of this important issue.

Do you have an opinion about an issue in Mehlville and Oakville? Write a and email it to sarah.flagg@patch.com.