And all those issues of drainage abatement and potential land usage or resale would require thorough analysis, to elevate them above quickly surmised opinions.  Seems unknown whether your idea of flood abatement would have worked.  Yet Marty firmly believes, that it would not. 

BASICALLY, spending big chunks of community bucks $$$$ deserves full transparency, not backroom secrecy.  

And since that land later sold for a lower price, it appears the OP offer was too high anyhow.  Not the bargain which some viewed it. 

 Quoting Marty's message:

As one would expect you [Joe] and I [Marty] were on different sides of this board endeavor. I was elected to the board by the majority of our membership who supported my opposition to this wasteful spending. BTW, for the record, the property sold to a local real estate developer for less then OPA offered. The bank in Hartford County didn’t like dealing with, and I quote, our “amateur“ board.

I won’t waste any more time commenting on the ridiculous notion that this property could solve our drainage issues because it doesn’t. 

Tom