Ok, let’s get to the nubbin of it, eastern and western Taney County live in two different worlds. An outsider watching what has been transpiring recently would sense the same thing that the Ole Seagull sensed when he moved to Taney County just about twenty years ago. That eastern Taney County and the Taney County Commissioners treat the economic generator of the vast majority of Taney County’s tax revenues, the immediate Branson area and its tourism based industry, as an arrant child and a tolerated pain.
Well brothers and sisters let’s relieve the pain. Section 47-310 of the Missouri Revised Statutes says that “The question of dividing any county or of striking from any county any portion thereof, whether for the purpose of forming a new county or of adding to any other county” may be initiated on the petition of not less than one hundred voters of such county. Let’s, just for a moment, imagine, what could happen if just 100 people from Taney County petitioned for the western district of Taney County be struck from Taney County for the purposes of establishing a new county.
Oh, there’s more involved but wouldn’t it be worth the effort. Just think, instead of the Taney County Commission and eastern Taney County concerning themselves with what Branson is doing, or not doing, and the character of its leadership they can concentrate all their efforts on running the new slimmed down Taney County. Branson and Hollister will be located in the new county, which, for the purposes of this column only, the Ole Seagull will call Freeus County.
In the past, the Taney County Commissioners have expressed concern about Branson Landing. With Branson Landing being located in the new Freeus County they would no longer have to concern themselves with issues involving Branson Landing.
Well maybe all but one. The comparison that some people make to the expenditure of over $1 million in fees wasted trying to put the new jail in locations other than the one ultimately chosen and the alleged $5 million the Australians received from the City of Branson on the Branson Landing Project. One thing is for sure, the $1 million is going to contribute as much to the actual building of the new jail as whatever it was the Australians got from the city of Branson contributed to the building of Branson Landing. But, on a more positive note, will Taney County even need a new jail if Freeus County is formed?
With the establishment of Freeus County, current Taney County Commissioner Ron Herschend won’t have to take time from his busy day to disrespect all those involved in the FirstPLACE county wide character education program by using the program as a political tool to publicly lecture the Branson Board of Aldermen on character traits. Hum, come to think of it he will be out of a job so that will give him lots of time to stand in front of the mirror and repeat “Respect – treating others with courtesy and honor” over and over until it becomes his own.
Taney County Commissioners and the citizens of Taney County wouldn’t have to be concerned about taxes to promote tourism because most of the tourism, and the tax revenues it provides, would be in Freeus County. The good news is that they will have plenty of time to figure out how much they will have to raise personal property and real estate taxes or cut services on themselves to make up the loss of Branson’s tourism related tax revenues.
Bee Creek Sewer Project problems such as whether it will cost $16 million or $23 million, where the extra $7 million will come from if its $23 million, and the monthly interest payments on the $16 million dollars that was borrowed for its construction last January will become moot as to Taney County. Those and other problems such as the logic for not extending the project down the very lake shore it is designed to protect will become Freeus problems to solve and finance.
Oh, it would take some effort but won’t it be worth it? Isn’t it a “win-win” situation?” Don’t the impassioned words of Dr. Martin Luther King describe how a lot of people in both the new Freeus County and Taney County would feel if it happened, “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”
