Dear Editor: For many years now my wife and I have made many visits to (Principal) Mr. Greg Fowler's office at Heritage High School complaining of students parking on our street across from the school.

In the early years I would simply tell the student he or she was not allowed to use the street to park and restrict traffic flow. You see, they parked way off the curb and then one on the other side - well you get the picture. Always I got a polite "sorry" and they moved on and never returned. Then the new crowd started moving "down" from the northern states and wow what a difference. I was told to shut up and once was told I would get my butt kicked. The arriving deputy got that handled quickly. You see I had almost every day 15 vehicles from out of county and many out of state tags. Yes Maryland, Illinois, Michigan, Virginia, etc. Rarely was it a local! Yes and these cars returned for a second and third year.

The former Superintendent agreed to a full one hour meeting with us at the school board office complete even with a captain from the Sheriff's department. About 10 on their side attended and many areas we worked out but the school parking issue.

You see, the students who get caught on school grounds for having improper items, we might say, not only lose many privileges but Georgia law requires they also lose their license to drive. So they park off campus walk over and get their contraband and walk back to school. We witnessed numerous drug deals done right in front of our house. A car would roll in - do the bump knuckle shake and swap drugs for money. So fast a blink you would miss it.

I pleaded with school board to get them on campus and at least keep the sun from damaging the parking lot. The parking lot almost half empty or more each day caused massive damage to it and with no regular preventive maintenance they had to tear it all up last week. Yes, and who will put in an Open Records Request at the school board and see how much was wasted yet the official got their big check regardless. And by the way anyone dumb enough to say this had to be done please remember them and Never take their advice because it will cost you dearly. Do you see any mall owners tearing up their lots. No they do regular preventive work to save huge dollars.

But we have a Superintendent who just got a grand bonus. Would that have been possible with real controls to have prevented just this one occurrence. And by the way again last year they tore up all the area in the drive thru area and teacher parking and complete repave from dirt up.

This is the waste we taxpayers are experiencing because school boards have almost infinite dollars to waste - yours and mine.

I tried to go to meeting after meeting with the old board. I truly hope this new one can break the log jam and get head office personnel to employ real logical and practical experience to everyday situations. I was encouraged to see Ms. Sharon Pharr vote no on the bonus - guess she does have the vision to see thru that thick smoke screen at headquarters.

Don Meyer
Rockdale County