Fellow residents and neighbors,
As I testified at the Snow Hill BZA hearing and told individuals on the phone or in person, I promised to listen to your concerns regarding the Newark Blast site.
I had actually made up my mind last week against using the site, after talking with several of you personally. For those of you that spent your resources on meetings, lawyers and yard signs, I am sorry you wasted your time.
However the real loss was to our local economy.
Note, the site is currently an unlimited blast range and sand strip mine. Our activity there would have put limits on the charges, added security, and a link to the community so you would not be surprised. We had planned to environmentally baseline the site and closely monitor it. We were ready to further limit the site to scale testing only, something that is barely noticeable and the key thing that speeds our work. Working with the BZA and the county, we planned to let the public witness the first few tests to be sure everyone was comfortable. Fear of the unknown is usually best battled with simple reality. That is now lost. The range will continue to operate, as it has in the past, completely exempt and unlimited.
As one of the closest neighbors, the occasional noise does not bother or scare my family anymore than a random clap of thunder. I personally don't want our local law enforcement officers dealing with the real thing in a live situation, untrained.
During this process, I have been surprised by a few specific individual's public display of sensationalism and engineering ignorance. Images of nuclear explosions and narratives of jackhammers in people ridiculous. It's ok to say you won't make the minuscule sacrifice to hear a loud noise once in a while to help protect American lives, but just come out and say it.
Solid science and responsible resource use should be the basis of any good decision where a community, a country and our warfighter's safety is concerned. Since Hardwire's inception in a South Point garage, the County Economic Development office, County Commissioners, State Government officials, Federal
representatives and most recently, the BZA, have all taken the time to understand the facts. They played key roles in helping create great products, good high paying jobs, and tens of millions in tax revenues for the Federal, State, County and City Governments. As a prime example, the City of Pocomoke has been an amazing place to do business, and played a pivotal role in our speed and resulting success.
Our company has been entrusted with the lives of the individual war-fighters that are ordered to use our products. The soldier in the field does not get a choice; he or she has to trust we have done our job. This is a responsibility we wanted, we earned and we will protect. As a CEO, as a father, and as an American, I will not let anything stand in the way of doing the best job imaginable, as fast as possible.
Being right is not what's at stake for us. It's being on time with just one piece of armor that saves a life, a limb, a hand, or just a few surgeries.
For those of you that supported the effort, thank you... for the rest, I am sorry you will not experience the pride of knowing you helped when you could have.
George C. Tunis III
Chairman & CEO
15 comments:
I am disgusted by the chronic complainers who felt compelled to make an issue out this. How come a peep was never uttered before when explosions were conducted at the site? No doubt it was a need to feed one's feeliings of importance.
I hope the general public ridicules and ostracises the 300 or so people who signed the petition. They deserve it for all the lies and embelishments they have told.
Worcester County Resident
What a grand imagination people with money have. I hope some of these people are business owners themselves
I hope they are happy with the outcome.
I wish I could remember the name of the jerk who was claiming (ummm telling lies) who said it would sound like a jackhammer next to your tent if you were camping at Assateague.
That had to be the best one!
Someone should do a Facebook called Worcester county residents who are against the military, AND the local economy.
The word needs to get out if some of these people are business owners.
Hope word does get out!!
This may have made a few more jobs available for some already unemployed people in the Pocomoke area. Can't blame it on city hall this time.
Hardwire is the company that has donated bullet proof items to local police departments I think!
This is terrible! What have these complainers donated????
We need companies like this to succeed because if one officers life is saved it is worth it.
Gee Thanks SEASHORE not C4. Mr Tunis does not need you, me or us but we as a community need him!
There are many in this neighborhood (your neighborhood also) who depend on HIM. Thanks for the loss of potentially more jobs for the area.
There are other areas that would welcome this manufacturing business with open arms and not make a fuss.
What a bunch of FOOLS you are! You should be ashamed of yourselves. Your children will hang their heads in shame thinking back on all of this when they want to stay in the area and have no jobs. Again FOOLS you all are and I hope you are proud of yourselves!
What a shameful repulsive group you are!
Now "they" have responded back with a letter and it in short says Mr Tunis' letter is an insult to the community!!!!
NewsFlash SEASHORE! YOU ALL ARE THE INSULT TO THE COMMUNITY!
You have destroyed the potential for more jobs in an area with an already high unemployment rate!!!
GET IT! UNDERSTAND???
You all are fools sticking your nose in something you know nothing about and listening to peoples lies and embellishments.
Clueless people! It's people like them who have ruined this country by contributing to the loss of jobs. Here we have a company willing to do business in the area, who could God willing expand. But NOOOOOO! The complainers have to make it hard on them. I wish Hardwire would reconsider and then maybe they all will move!
My friend has lived by way of the crow flying around 10 mi from Aberdeen Proving Grounds and she herself has told me on occasion that it sounds like thunder. She has lived there since the early 90's.
Hardwire is a small business with only the potential to expand. We should be welcoming them with open arms and be willing to sacrifice what amounts to just a little bit to help them expand. They manufacture products not only for the military but also for law enforcement. If they can keep their costs down by keeping operations close to their facility the employees and future employees would benefit.
Yes, we are lucky to have them in Pocomoke where jobs are scarce.
Also the taxpayers would have benefitted from them leasing the range.
Stacey Simpson's quote from the Daily Times:
"I have a lot of people I'm trying to defend here, and none of us, myself included, want dead soldiers," she said. "So if that's the spin he's taking on it ... I come from three generations of U.S. military. So I'm very offended by the way they've been talking."
She claims this is what is implies in Mr Tunis' letter and then goes on to call it "spin."
If you read the letter no where is it implied what she is claiming. She has alot of nerve claiming "spin" when that and telling downright lies is what THEY have been doing.
Yes, she does have reason to be "offended" but not by Mr Tunis' letter. Not only should she feel offended but also ashamed by the lies and misinformation her group has spread around.
According to the property tax site, the county purchased the range property in 1975. These Simpson people who are complaining bought their property in 2003. How dumb? It's like people who buy a house near an airport and then complain. Anyone who buys near a property owned by the government ought know to expect anything.
"We had planned to environmentally baseline the site"
Interesting. So the county and taxpayers missed out on this opportunity to have the site checked for contaminates free of charge?
"Seashore NOT C-4 On Md's Coastal Bays It is not about Mr. Tunis. It is about the county changing the zoning code to allow 'military testing facilities' as an acceptable use in the Resource Protection District. Bombing ranges are not an acceptable use in the RP District and es...pecially on public lands. It is about the County manipulating due process in order to circumvent the Comprehensive Plan and escalate a questionable use of that particular publicly owned land without fair"
They are saying bombing is not an acceptable use of the site.
I have been reading in the newspaper for years about bombs being detonated at the range by some terrorism task force and also fire marshall offices so they can observe how they work.
If this group were truly sincere about why they don't want Hardwire detonating then they need to refocus and get a petiton going agaisnt the FBI and all the other LE agencies that use the range.
Isn't that what the site was designed for - 7:45?
I just think this group didn't realise there was going to be a meeting about this, missed the chance to attend and some whacko spoke up about it to them and put some really incorrect info in their heads then imagination got the best of them.
Yes, 7:55 that's exactly what the site is for but they would never have the nerve to go against the federal government-you know IRS audits and ICE coming down on the complainers. Stuff like that happens.
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