Extreme Behavior at Southwest Government Center

Over 200 people jammed a courtroom at an overheated Southwest Government Center on Dixie Highway tonight, seeking answers and demanding that MSD find alternatives to its proposal to pump sewage from Jeffersontown to the waste water treatment facility in Southwestern Louisville. Mostly angry and whipped into some sort of frenzied lather, the crowd became vocal after MSD Executive Director Bud Schardein started the meeting off by criticizing Chris Theineman for passing out literature. The literature in question was dismissed as "flatly false" and "propaganda" by Schardein, who was visibly pissed off. Bud seemed to be backed into a corner, and was irked at the idea that people actually showed up for the "presentation". There were some valid questions and some strong suggestions that MSD should look at other ways to address the waste water capacity problem, all of which made perfect sense. There was much shouting, and people crammed the doorways with necks craned to hear all the ruckus. Those in attendance repeated their belief that a decision had already been made, to which Schardein replied, "No decision has yet been made". Wild laughter ensued.

There was heavy anger directed toward the conspicuously absent Mayor, affectionately dubbed "King Jerry" by attendees . WAVE-3 was the only television station that did not bother to send a reporter. The Courier-Journal also ignored the story, which I believe to be inexcusable. I contacted every reporter from every department that had an interest in the story, yet the paper saw fit to act as though the meeting contained nothing worth reporting.

The action that residents seek can be accomplished in a thoughtful way, such as writing letters against any measure that would indeed send sewage from the East Side to Valley Station. You will not get what you want if you only fall prey to someone's personal agenda. It is essential that this is done correctly.

If you need assistance in drafting a letter outlining your opposition to the plan, please let me know. I will gladly help all of you get letters to the appropriate officials, something that wasn't offered by any of the "leaders" present tonight. We, as citizens, have a right to be heard and our efforts will not go unnoticed if we do it correctly. Again, please let me know if I can help.

Rick Redding@ The 'Ville Voice has an excellent take on the meeting. Read his account HERE.
Ed Springston @ Louisville News and Politics also has the story. Read Ed HERE.