Great opportunity

The idea that St. Michael’s church on 23rd Avenue would just disappear and a shopping center take its place is disturbing to those of us who enjoy the role that architecture can play in providing a familiar and comforting setting in our community.

The Episcopal Diocese appears to have little interest in maintaining this remarkable church. In many cases private corporations or individuals have stepped up in such situations and found creative ways to renovate the interiors of historic buildings in strikingly inventive ways. Gainesville is lucky to have many such people and companies who might see this as a great opportunity to improve their current crowded facilities and create an inspiring place to work.

The Chamber of Commerce, a re-oriented Community Redevelopment Agency or other development-minded civic groups should see this as a great opportunity to search for the people, ideas and means to re-purpose this historic structure.

Ron Haase, Gainesville


Spending addiction

Gainesville Regional Utilities prepared a presentation for the Gainesville City Commission General Policy Committee discussion of the general fund transfer on Dec. 13

GRU does not have available funds to make transfer payments to the city at the current level, with GRU projecting a $35.4 million deficit during fiscal years 2019-21. Debt service in fiscal year ‘21 is 60 percent of net revenue. In simple terms, GRU lacks the free cash flow from operations to meet the excessive transfer payment demands imposed by the city politicians.

GRU is on a path to further debt downgrade and financial distress if the city politicians keep bleeding the utility to death to fuel their insatiable spending addiction with taxpayer money. The transfer must be reduced or the city politicians will be forced to raise GRU rates or property taxes even higher, since they show no fiscal restraint refusing to cut their own budget while eating catered meals at taxpayer expense.

The city politicians have hidden the truth by burning through GRU cash reserves and now they finally have to face the reality of their fiscally irresponsible mismanagement.

Nathan A. Skop, Gainesville


Pay teachers

I was greatly moved and disturbed by Natalie Babcock's Dec. 17 column in The Sun. For over 70 of my 80 years I have heard or read that municipal, state and federal legislators all agreed that teachers should be given a decent, livable wage. Yet, it has never happened.

A scumbag like Leslie Moonves of CBS was supposed to get a $120 million severance package until the network decided against giving it, but teachers can't make a decent living. Betsy DeVos, the billionaire secretary of education, has probably not spent one day or even one hour teaching in a public school and she is determining how funds should be allocated?

There seems to be money for schools to acquire guns, ammunition and security doors, but not for pencils or salaries. What a crazy world we live in!

Howard B. Rothman, Gainesville


Campaign expense

If Donald Trump used campaign finances to pay off the two women to protect the campaign and he reported it, that would be legal. If Trump used his own money to pay off the women to protect the campaign and he reported it, that would be legal. He did use his own money but he didn’t report it.

Trump can argue that he did it to protect his family and didn’t need to report it as a campaign expense. The trouble with that is both Michael Cohen and the parent company of the National Enquirer are on record saying he did it to protect the campaign.

Ron Warner, Live Oak


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