Mr. Qualls, are you done yet? For months now, you have brought your brasher, roughshod version of “Get Jesse” to this town while publishing personal attacks toward elected officials whose sole intent is to help protect the people of this community. As a nearly lifelong resident of Enumclaw and one of the taxpayers you supposedly represent, I can appreciate your time to investigate issues such as these that affect the people of this town – many of whom are elderly and on fixed incomes. I also believe that there are standards of professionalism one should follow when pursuing these types of endeavors, which do not include name-calling, personal attacks, bias, fabrication and presentation of fact and fiction, or getting thrown out of city council meetings.

I’d like to step back and tell you a little story. I am a 1992 graduate of Enumclaw High School. Many students were fond of a particular science/geology teacher at EHS who really cared about his students and worked hard to let them know he cared. He used to work out in the gym either before or after school and was always there to boost his students’ morale or help them in times of need. Several years ago this teacher suffered a cardiac arrest at his home here in town. An important piece of Enumclaw was lost that day.

No one knows for sure whether or not he could have been resuscitated; however, community awareness was heightened and concerns were expressed as to whether or not a delayed response time by the volunteer system to that 911 call may have at least been a factor in the final outcome. Regardless, the citizens of Enumclaw never faulted the firefighters involved in that incident, but felt rather that the staffing system in place at the time was in need of revision. Thus began the movement toward a 24-hour, fully-staffed fire department.

According to Commissioner Dave Hannity, Enumclaw’s volunteer firefighters continue to play a huge role in those staffing efforts. I now sleep well at night knowing that our station has qualified volunteer and professional firefighters and EMT on call 24 hours a day. I also know that providing this valuable service costs money. As many different types of upstanding businesses do, the fire department and its fire commissioners did extensive wage and benefits studies involving other area departments in an attempt to bring their employees up to par with surrounding districts. This is a responsible, legitimate exercise necessary for quality service as the department brought itself up to area standards.

Wouldn’t you agree that employees who feel they are treated fairly perform their duties and tasks better and more efficiently than those that don’? In addition, our fire chief is now paid in line with area chiefs in similarly-sized departments, yet he does his job without the additional help of assistant chiefs, deputy chiefs and other personnel that are often found in other departments.

Over the course of these past months you’ve been called out on several occasions by other letters for misrepresentation of facts. If any business were to operate based on one-sided, incomplete information obtained as carelessly and haphazardly as yours has been, that business would be discredited and no longer in business within weeks.

Let’s talk next about the new property bought in town – yes, I say in town because it was recently annexed into Enumclaw’s city limits, greatly increasing its value. A reliable source (city of Enumclaw’s Building and Planning Department) ensured me that, although the King County Assessment website says wetlands may in some way affect 75 percent of the property, there aren’t any official wetland studies or designations submitted by the EPA or other government agency.

King County’s online iMap system provides current mapping tools that delineate wetlands and other sensitive areas recognized on various properties. iMap corroborated the city of Enumclaw’s statement that there currently aren’t any “Sensitive Area” restrictions, including wetlands. There aren’t any abandoned coal mines or 100-year flood plains either, in case you were wondering.

Here is another spin on this property. As a financial advisor, I’m sure you are familiar with investments for future economic planning. This property is zoned R-2. This designation makes it eligible not only for a fire station, but also for subdivision into 8,400-square foot residential building lots.

What am I getting at? Let’s do the math: property is 5.85 acres x 43,560 sf/acre = 254,826 sf divided by 8,400 sf/lot = 30 possible lots based strictly on square footage. Let’s go conservative and say 24 lots by the time you add city streets, fire department access, etc. If each of those lots sells for a conservative $50,000 each, you’re at a value of about $1.2 million. Not a bad investment if you ask me, even after required capital improvements such as sewer extensions, etc. I’d buy in if I could afford it.

I’ll let the comment blog at http://www.courierherald.com/lifestyle/147390835.html# from The Courier Herald’s website do the talking in regards to your statements about Mr. Dave Hannity and AMR. I don’t have enough room (nor time) in this editorial to dispel all of the magic you’ve twisted here; however, I would like to note that all Enumclaw Fire Department ambulances are and must be staffed by professional EMTs who are assisted by King County Medic One on an as-needed basis only for advanced life support (ALS). Determination of need for ALS is often made at time of dispatch based upon the nature of the call (car accident, man unconscious, etc.).

I could go on and on, but the bottom line is this: I am tired of the constant barrage of insults and misrepresentation on the part of you and your cohorts. I, as a taxpayer that you claim to so diligently defend, am asking that you, the nonelected watchdog of this community, step down from your post. Should you choose to investigate future matters of public interest in this small town, please maintain your credibility with dedicated research and a more professional approach. At this point in time you do not represent me. Your business of investigating issues in the public interest is quickly losing its credibility, and so the saying goes, “you’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, you’ve got to know when to fold ‘em.” I’ll take the guesswork out of it for you: it’s time to fold ‘em.

In closing, I would like to thank Chief Joseph Clow, King County District 28 Board of Fire Commissioners Dave Hannity, Ryan Terhune, and Chris Ingram, and all of the emergency services personnel that serve the Enumclaw Plateau area. The quality of service is exceptional and I believe I speak for the majority when saying we’re behind you.

Lee Blechschmidt

Enumclaw