To the Editor:

The confusion surrounding ‘softwatergate’ continued at the Tuesday Faribault County Board meeting. The county board doesn’t seem to agree on the differences between an estimate, a bid, a proposal or a quote.

Now the board says the bid, proposal, estimate or quote winner, Garlick’s Water Conditioning, would have to make sure their softwater system meets the specifications for the new jail — which we know it doesn’t at the commissioners should have known at the time.

Now, it makes me wonder why the board awarded the contract in the first place for a bid, proposal, estimate or quote that did not meet the specifications required. Clarification was made that the bid was actually a proposal, but was continued to be referred to as a bid by the commissioners. Now, to save face, the commissioners will be forcing Garlick’s Water Conditioning to upgrade their bid, proposal, estimate, quote, to meet the softwater specifications.

So what did the county board do to solve this problem? They formed a committee. Which, conveniently, doesn’t meet until after the election. Commissioners Steier, Loveall and Warmka voted to accept the Garlick bid, proposal, estimate, quote. How can you support a bid, proposal, estimate, quote that doesn’t meet the specifications I ask?

I would like to thank Erichsrud and Groskreutz for voting against this proposal, estimate, quote or bid in the first place.

I was on the county board for 16 years and never saw much confusion, ineptness or incompetent decision making. It’s a good things it’s an election year.

Loren B. Lein, Blue Earth