Letter to the Editor: My 2 cents worth on old elementary school

Dear Editor:
I was gone a little longer this time and decided to catch up on what’s shaking. Wow, what a hornet’s nest. Welcome to Meeker, America, with all due respect for those wanting to turn the one square block of school area downtown into a detention center and jail, I think this would be a terrible mistake.
Of course, what I do know is that I’m just a worker bee.
In the paper dated Feb. 27, 2014, I saw where the Rio Blanco County Board of Commissioners, AKA the Comish: No. 1—Everything needs to be in one place and in compliance. (Great.) Expand where it’s at or move the whole project somewhere else. (Leave school alone.). No. 2—Cool, put in incubator pods to help create jobs, add art, culture and music along with history, heritage and agriculture. (Create a fun place to meet, learn and expand your horizons, not a place to detain juveniles and import minimum security inmates so they can finish up their hitch). No. 3—The architectural drawing seen on the front page of the March 20, 2014, issue sure doesn’t look like historic downtown Meeker to me. I guess that’s what makes us all different, in the fact that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For this to be in the middle of downtown Meeker disgusts me. No. 4— If indeed you’re taking into consideration the historic value of downtown Meeker, this wouldn’t even be a conversation. With all that being said, I beg of you to step back and reconsider what you’re proposing to do with one of Colorado’s landmarks that will change the face of downtown Meeker forever in what I feel is a negative way.
We are the county seat. We do need to improve our courthouse and jail or just build another one. As a matter of fact, I personally have two fine locations, one city and county. Both are right in line with Meeker’s new expansion and hospital west of town: 10 acres city Highway 13 and County Road 15 or 25 acres on County Road 15 across from Redi, Liberty Industrial Park. (Wow.)
Phase 2 of my two cents worth is to you and for you. To the citizens and the community of Meeker, Colo., and as a concerned resident, it looks like we all have our work cut out because, it seems, the elite few have already made up their minds without you.
As Bob Amick said, “The railroad has come to town.” Connie, Maryanne, Dixie, Gary, Charlie and everyone else out there who wasn’t given the opportunity or their constitutional right to petition this or speak your 2 cents worth, don’t’ worry. You will for now. What you must do is stop it!
Fight fire with fire. Be heard, protest, if need be, get an injunction to stall the process for the further insight we’re owed. And last but not least, this is a tough one, do not supply products, goods, services, equipment or labor to do something you don’t believe in.
Sanction materials and boycott bids. Do you really want to make money one time on something you don’t believe in so you and your children and grandchildren can look at it for the rest of your life?
There are plenty of options for the city and county to accomplish their goals without ruining downtown.
Randy Ridgeway
Meeker