A projected annual cost of $1,500 was already too much to take for Ripley property owners who turned out in full force for a recent meeting on the sewer project. Those in attendance spoke of the hardship this project would be, even if it meant future development for the town.

Enter attorney Michael Bolender, for his words of wisdom to those in attendance. “Obviously, this has caught a lot of people off guard,” he said. “But the numbers are what they are. We can’t change that.”

How comforting that must have been for those in the town to hear.

Consider this: Bolender, the longtime town attorney, has made plenty of cash off residents in this county. In Ripley alone from 2009 to 2012, he collected $346,000 from residents.

Imagine how much money the town might have saved using another attorney. Oh well. As Bolender would say, “the numbers are what they are. We can’t change that.”