Perhaps someone needs to remind Art Warren that Chesterfield has two seats at the table of the Richmond Metropolitan Authority board (“Closing the Gate,” News & Features, March 26). If he thinks it is so unfair that Chesterfield does not have equal representation on the board, perhaps he should find $57 million in their budget to pay the city back for its investment. That is the only reasonable option for allowing any of the surrounding counties to get additional representation on the RMA board.

All of the RMA facilities are in the city. The city fronted much money, time and effort into building the RMA expressway system and RMA owes the city for it. As a citizen of the city, I find it particularly unfair that Chesterfield thinks it should have more say over an organization in which the city has invested so much. Of course, I am sure the General Assembly will fall for Chesterfield’s whining and give in since it is dominated by suburban jurisdictions that feel they have no responsibility to respect the cities of this commonwealth. Cities cannot annex; cities are stuck with far more poverty in large part because of exclusionary policies of their surrounding suburbs. Now the icing on the cake: Chesterfield cannot stand for the city operating an expressway system it largely built and which, of course, made it much easier for people to live in Chesterfield and escape the big, bad city. Spare me the sob story.

F.E. Scudder Wagg
Richmond