Diane Cronin writes the BEST LETTER TO THE EDITOR EVER!!!!

Diane Cronin is a concerned homeowner in the Eastern part of Oconee County, much closer to the river than Watkinsville. She has battled clear-cutting developers tearing virgin forests and rare old growth tree thickets to no avail, but now she has State Representative Bob Smith in her sight. Her rage stems from Smith's approach to the exceptional and historic drought crisis, which is give back to landscapers the right to water the lawns. Even the slightly yellowed lawn at Athens Academy's Slaughter football field has survived the drought and frost reasonably well. Now I do not know if the fine landscapers at Athens Academy or elsewhere have used lake water or gray water to keep their fields and lawns reasonably hydrated. I hope no more area landscapers have to deal with the drought to the point of going out of business, but I also know the plans for the Charmar closing were in works for years. Athens-Clarke and Oconee counties are forever joined at the hip legislatively, economically and with water flowing on the rivers and streams that know no boundaries we have created. Will Oconee get by with new private/public wells and will Clarke continue to save water with success? Will we get more rain? I sure hope so. Oconee Well Drillers was one of the first major industrial success stories, and perhaps they will save us again.