Catherine J. Sykes

To the editor:My husband Frank and I are the soul trustees of Swann Realty Trust set up for the benefit of our two sons. We are not a Real Estate company, as previously reported in this paper. We are passionate about the antiques business. We are not looking to buy the courthouse and turn it into something undesirable. In fact, we have many of the same goals as the readers and Ossipee Historical Society, the primary goal being historic preservation. We fully understand and appreciate the beauty of the Ossipee Corner village and courthouse, which is why we're interested in the property. My bid proposal pointed out some obvious flaws with the bid process, the primary issues being that commissioners were outwardly urging only non-profit organizations with an historical mission to bid and also the right to refuse or reject any bid. This wording flies in the face of logic and also eliminates any competitive bidding as dictated by law in the deed and in the revised statue annotated which governs property owned by the state. If the commissioners were interested in giving the building back to Carroll County, then it would seem a county-wide historical society made up of members from every town in the county would be more in keeping with their responsibilities to county taxpayers. Ossipee Historical Society is just thatits mission clearly states it is a body to preserve the history of the town and people of Ossipee and only Ossipee. Wolfeboro Historical Society heartily endorsed the appointment of Ossipee Historical Society because it didn't cost anything in time, effort or money. There was no true commitment on behalf of Wolfeboro Historical Society or from any other town in the county. It's very easy to endorse something verbally, but not so easy to support something day in and day out with your labor and dollars. Most importantly, our plans include a blend of the following: Research library for antiques and collectibles. We own a significant library which we're unable to share with the public for lack of current space. This building would allow us the pleasure. Geneology center for local families. Geneology is something enjoyed by many citizens and retired folks who live in our area and we see potential for a network of computers, manned by volunteers and staff and open to public research. We could provide Internet access for many citizens who don't have the ability or those who live in remote areas. Historical societies. We envision a room or two dedicated to every town in the county so they could set up ever changing exhibits of their historical artifacts celebrating their towns and collections. Meeting space. Space would be available to be utilized for large groups of people, opening up the building to many county-wide non-profit organizationsin fact, any group that might want to use it for meetings. That would possibly include Rotary, Lions, Masons, etc. We have an especially long track record of helping non-profit organizations, especially those that include children. Retail. We would also utilize many of the rooms for retail space of antiques and collectibles. Retail space is good for the community. It draws people to the area who leave money at gas stations, hotels, restaurants and, quite often, develops future homeowners and taxpayers. Taxes. The primary difference between the Ossipee Historical Society proposal and our proposal is by putting it back into private hands, the building would generate taxes. The Granite State News and Carroll County Independent roughly estimated close to $10,000. Approximately $5,500 per year would directly benefit the regional schools, $750 would go to Ossipee Corner Fire Precinct, $400 would go to the county and the remaining $3,200 would go to the town of Ossipee. That would also be year after year after year. As I see it, that's a lot of help to a lot of Carroll County residents. Asset management. Lastly, we believe the commissioners have a fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayers of Carroll County and the state of New Hampshire who have bought and paid for the building over the years. By giving away one of our major assets we believe they are not serving the taxpayers in their best interest. Instead of having the commisioners asking us, the taxpayers, for more money to move the current facility to the new location, perhaps the money raised from the sale of the old courthouse could be earmarked for that purpose, or it could be used to defray the cost of the multi million dollar building under construction on Route 171. At some time during this process, we heard the commissioners don't have to ask the taxpayers if a transaction is less then $5,000, but if it involves more then $5,000 then they need to go to the delegation, which is made up of 14 state representatives, representing the taxpayers from every town in the county, not just one or two. People who run and serve in public office do so because they want to serve at the pleasure of the citizens. I'm sure they will use their combined wisdom to manage the county assets in a fiscally responsible method for the citizens of the entire county. So, perhaps you should have worded the Tele-talk question to read "Should the old Carroll County courthouse be sold to a profit or non-profit organization, both of which are interested in historic preservation?" The profit venture also creates annual taxes, jobs and tourism. In closing, we have a 15-year track record of managing a large-scale budget, we have full-time employees to man the building six or seven days per week, every week, year round and as professional antiques dealers we have a commitment to historic preservation. We have every intention of maintaining the building in a historically pleasing fashion. The Ossipee Historical Society has started the paperwork process to get the building placed on the National Register of Historic Places and we would embrace the idea and complete the process. Frank and I personally have the stamina and long term commitment to oversee and maintain a project of this magnitude. We look forward to Monday and encourage everyone to come and hear and be heard when the Carroll County Commissioners meet the Carroll County Delegation to sort this out.