Has anyone noticed the flurry of activity surrounding Pullman Park? It is a wonderful accomplishment, but at what cost to the taxpayers?

The original concept of this field that was donated to the city of Butler was for it to be operated by a board of trust and to be enjoyed by the citizens of Butler, and to provide a place for kids from throughout the county to play baseball.

It is no longer operated by a group of volunteers; we now have a park manager. How much is he earning and where is that money coming from?

Now we come to the minority ownership of the new Prospect League team, the Butler BlueSox. It was stated in the Butler Eagle that the Butler City Parks, Recreation, Grounds and Facility Authority has taken minority ownership of the new team. How can a city of Butler authority take taxpayers' money and become part owner of this team?

I feel that this authority should disclose all the facts concerning the operation of Pullman Park to the residents and taxpayers of the city. There will be a significant jump in operating cost. How is it being paid for?

Last year, an article in the Butler Eagle stated that teams were being charged a per-game fee to play at Pullman. I was at one time the president and a director of the Butler Area Baseball Association, which supported a prep league that consisted of at least six teams of 18 players per team, and a Butler County American Legion team, for a total of roughly 125 kids from Butler County playing there. Parents, grandparents and other family member could attend games free of charge.

If memory serves me right, there once was a group of volunteers who operated this facility at a very small cost to the city, about $3,000 a year. How much is it going to cost us to enjoy a baseball game now?

Now to move on to the Butler Redevelopment Authority's purchase of the Penn Theater from the Rasely group of investors. The plan is to renovate it and hand it back to this group at no cost. Is this sound financial planning? Does anyone realize that the principal investor in this group, Donald Rasely, is a felon?

I urge the people of our city to take notice of the financial decisions being made by the authorities operating under the direction of our city council and mayor. I'm worried about our future.