BY FRANK DELANO
Westmoreland County officials left only bits of public paper along the path that led them to a controversial contract with The O'Gara Group, according to opponents of the security-training company.
Of 34 Freedom of Information Act requests to the county for O'Gara records, 22 came back as "no existing records applicable to request," Robert Quinn, a spokesman for an anti-O'Gara group told a packed supervisors' meeting Monday night.
Dennis and Norma McGuire of Mount Holly got the same response for some of those FOIA requests, they said in a pleading filed Monday morning in Westmoreland Circuit Court.
In their affidavit for an injunction of mandamus against County Administrator Norm Risavi, the McGuires wrote, "It is implausible that no documentation or correspondence of any sort was generated for this significant transaction amounting to approximately $679,000 for the sale of the county-owned 'shell' building and 25 acres."
The county's Industrial Development Authority voted after a closed meeting in January to sell the property to O'Gara. The company also has a contract to purchase 325 acres of adjacent agriculture land for $2.5 million. Both deals are scheduled to close July 1.
The McGuires asked the court to prohibit the sale of the county property to O'Gara "until such time as any and all of the requested documentation is provided."
The barrage of FOIA requests did not please Supervisor Lynn C. Brownley.
"That's not information, that's aggravation," he said.
Nor is Brownley scared of the litigation against the Board of Supervisors and possibly more to come. "I like a good fight. Bring it on! Bring it on!" he said.
Anti-O'Gara group WE COUNT presented the supervisors with petitions signed by 900 people opposed to O'Gara's firearms, driving and combat training.
The company now operates in Halifax County. O'Gara officials have said they want to move closer to Washington, where many of their government and military clients are based.
Frank Delano: 804/761-4300
Email: fpdelano@gmail.com
| Judging from public comments at Monday night's supervisors meeting, Westmoreland County residents are deeply divided on the O'Gara issue. Of 21 speakers who voiced an opinion, nine spoke for and 12 spoke against the company. Here is a sampling:
COMMENTS IN FAVOR
"The majority of Westmoreland County citizens support [the supervisors'] efforts to bring economic benefits to our area." --R. David O'Dell Jr., Montross"Every time somebody comes along to buy that building, somebody says no. It's created the impression that we're not business-friendly. O'Gara is needed because we need someone to buy that building." --John E. Krainock, Kinsale"Anything to reduce the residential tax burden in this county is a good thing." --Christopher L. Anthon, Rixeyville, owner of a waterfront house at Cabin Point"I think O'Gara will be good neighbors. Their training will be a much more disciplined use of firearms than what normally goes on around here in hunting season. The sale of the county property will free up funds for another industrial park." --Robert R. Fountain, Montross COMMENTS AGAINST"Montross is not the right place for military training. It's going to ruin that area." --Lonnie L. Walls, Montross"I don't think the county will gain but a couple of jobs, but it will lose a lot of people coming here to retire." --Dennis McGuire, Mount Holly, who is seeking injunction to block the sale of county property to O'Gara"My major issue is safety. O'Gara will be shooting within a half-mile of a shopping center, schools and athletic fields." --Margaret Quinn, Mount Holly"We want a full disclosure of O'Gara's class cycles, class sizes and student load. What is their program of instruction? As citizens of this little town, we have a right to know." --Albert E. Frye, Montross"If [O'Gara] is such a great project, why don't [supervisors] open it up to the light of day? Why did we have to do it the way we did it?" --George J. Ripol, Montross |