March 8, 2007
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Sylva, NC
Volume 81, No. 50

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Letters to the Editor: 03/08/07

Want to write a letter? Guidelines for letters.

Decide moratorium question through referendum

To the Editor:

I have this really dumb idea about the moratorium. It probably will not work and seems silly.

Why don’t we just roll out our fancy voting machines, program them for either “Yes” or “No,” and let everyone in Jackson County vote on whether they want the moratorium. Majority wins. Seems simple. But it probably will not happen. Too many people will come up with too many objections. Most of the objections will dance around the issue of why letting the people of the county vote on an issue that affects the county won’t work.

One other small point – how come a large number of the construction vehicles parked on the side of the road Tuesday night had McNeely Truck Rental on the side and a number were also flat-bed car movers? Is the moratorium going to affect the towing business?

Chris Behre
Tuckasegee

To the Editor:

I write to say “thank you” to the realtors and developers who ran full-page ads in the Sylva Herald urging people to oppose the building moratorium and the writing of subdivision regulations that have been proposed by our county commissioners. Not that I agree with them. But those ads did list the commissioners’ phone numbers and e-mail addresses, and so they made it easy for me to contact the commissioners to say I wholeheartedly support their moratorium and their attempts to put some controls on what appears to me to be out-of-control development in Jackson County.

However, as a businessman in the county for 23 years, I say “no thanks” to the realtors and developers when they suggest that it is mainly people in the housing industry who have an economic stake in the development that’s going on. Not true. All workers in our county whose livelihood depends on tourism, as mine does, are being affected by the house-building too – adversely affected and threatened, that is, by the let-the-good-times-roll development boom that the county has experienced for the past 5-10 years. Tourists and visitors to Jackson County do not come to hear construction machines roaring and banging on the hillsides and to see creeks flowing the color of mud. They come for the clear mountain waters and green forests and rugged rock outcrops – not crops of houses, which are being planted from the low grounds along the Tuckaseigee River to the tops of the Cowee, Balsam, and Plott Balsam mountains. I’ve already had to stop taking my clients to one wild area in the county, because surrounding development has permanently erased the wildness from the landscape there. And other wild areas that tourists love to visit are being similarly tamed and destroyed.

Yes, we do have national forest land, where subdivisions can’t be built. But that land is also being altered, because the development crowds right up to its boundaries. (In fact, developers like nothing better than to tout their subdivisions as “bordering national forest.”) You can hike for an hour into the national forest and still hear the construction noise, come upon silty creeks, and see red-clay road cuts and roofs on nearby ridges. There’s hardly anyplace left in the county anymore where you can’t see such development.

As a businessman in Jackson County, I hope that our commissioners vote for the moratorium and keep the land planners at it until they have established subdivision and steep-slope/ridgetop regulations. I commend the commissioners for what they are doing. They were voted into office by concerned county residents, and in the nick of time, too.

Burt Kornegay,
Cullowhee

To the Editor:

I attended the public hearing on the subdivision moratorium last Tuesday night (Feb. 27) and I was surprised at the level of fear among many of the people who expressed opposition to the temporary halt on new development. Some of the their concerns were not ones based on fact; for instance, people seemed to overlook that all land that already has been subdivided is unaffected. It can be bought and sold and built upon. There will be no impact on anyone there.

I think part of the reason for those uninformed comments was the scare campaign waged by developers and real estate agents in this county.

Another major concern related to the impact on jobs. I too am concerned about the impact on the working people of this county, but if we look at the existing subdivisions waiting to be built, there will be plenty of work to continue. One possible compromise is the option to shorten the moratorium if the ordinances are put in place earlier than six months.

I also noted that the developers who spoke at the hearing all claimed to be “one of the good ones,” not responsible for the soil and water problems of the county. I am not sure we could find a single developer that would claim otherwise about their work; nevertheless, the problem is undeniable and some, if not most, of them are the culprits. Related to that, many developers claimed they support the proposed ordinances but oppose the moratorium. This is where I believe they are being disingenuous – what they are hoping to do is to buy themselves time to circumvent ordinances by hastily filing plats with the county in order to be grandfathered in. And I have not heard one person offer any scenario or logic as to how that would not be the case should the moratorium not be passed. The simple fact is, the ordinances will cost developers more money in the short run, and it is generally not in their interest to readily accept them. We should receive their comments with great skepticism.

My wife and I have been living in Jackson County since 2001, and once we got here we were quite smitten with the area. It is special. Because of that, we chose to buy a home here instead of in Haywood County, ensuring that my wife would have a daily 33-mile commute to work. The beauty of this county needs to be preserved; it is the true engine that runs our economy, not the construction industry. If we keep building at the present unregulated and breakneck pace, what makes this county so attractive to newcomers and tourists will have been destroyed, and that economic fallout will be impossible to recover from.

I am from Detroit, and I can’t help but be reminded of the auto industry by this present situation. In the 1970s the American auto companies failed to see the big picture, choosing to make immediate money by continuing with the production and sale of big gas-guzzling cars while our foreign competitors saw what was over the horizon. Detroit and the industrial Midwest still have not recovered from that lack of planning. They then repeated the same error in recent years, taking short-term profit over long-term sustainability, by being “late to the party” on the development of more energy-efficient technologies.

I have many friends and family members whose livelihoods have been affected by this over the past 30 years; I know the hardships that result from refusing to see the big picture. I implore the citizens of Jackson County to support the moratorium so that we do not cause the kind of harm to our jobs and the overall economy that will last much longer than six months.

Peter Nieckarz Jr.
Sylva

To the Editor:

I sat in the Myers Auditorium at Southwestern Community College Feb. 27 and listened to the speeches and comments of my neighbors for and against the current land-use policies proposed by the commissioners.

What struck me first and most bluntly was the fear that pervaded the room. There were many regular workers present, folks who make their living by the sweat of their brow in construction and concrete, who were genuinely afraid for their future and the prospects of their livelihood. Whatever one’s take on the proposals before us, one cannot help but be moved and concerned by those fears. It would be absolutely wrong to dismiss or marginalize the fears and concerns of those who believe they will be impacted by this process.

The problem is that the fear and even panic in the marketplace has arisen as much from the reaction to the proposed moratorium and the development of subdivision regulations as the actual process itself. The marketplace is unsettled, but much of that is a self-fulfilling prophecy created by an opposition campaign that has relied on misinformation, disinformation and manipulation to stir the pot and create fear. Screaming ads and mailings that proclaim doom and economic disaster are intended not to inform – or even warn – but simply to scare and create confusion. There are those in the marketplace who actually benefit from these tactics.

A scared workforce is a cheaper workforce. A scared seller is a more malleable seller. A frightened buyer may be less motivated, but they may also be more inclined to engage more expensive professional services to ensure the safety of their project. Interest rates are always determined in part by the perception of risks as much by the actual risks and an unsettled market offers an opportunity for profit.

One needs look no further than the oil market to see how rumor and fear create the opportunity for windfall profits. The history of this country is full of examples of the average working man being manipulated by fear and confusion to the benefit of moneyed interests.

“All we have to fear is fear itself.” With these words President Franklin D. Roosevelt sought to calm a public caught in the throes of the Great Depression, which was in part created and fed by a self-fulfilling prophecy of doom.

Those who have fanned the fire of opposition with fear, and not facts, have done so irresponsibly, and in some cases cynically, with an eye on future profit. They know that current disruptions and softening in the housing market are due primarily to national trends and recent increases in interest rates. They know too that they can generate support for their agenda of unfettered profits at the expense of our communities and people by preying on the fears and prejudices of average working folks.

We should acknowledge and address the fears of our neighbors with regard to the current land-use proposals, but none of us should be victimized by those who would use tactics of fear to manipulate the agenda or to undermine public discourse.

Mark Jamison
Cullowhee

To the Editor:

After going to the meeting Tuesday night over at the community college, I felt that I needed to write in hopes this letter would be published. I feel that the decisions being made will set the future course of this area and surrounding communities.

I am a wife of 36 years, married to a man who had the courage to quit a job in a factory in Michigan and move to this beautiful, peaceful town of Sylva in the Carolina mountains in order to work for a lifelong friend who is a “small-time” land developer. It was a leap of faith and courage to make this move that we have never regretted. We have learned to love this area and its people.

We have also learned not to let fear be the driving force in our lives since fear is a destroyer and not a builder for our futures. Fear is an enemy, not a friend. I believe that the motivation behind the proposed moratorium is from fear ... fear of change, fear of other people, fear of “losing control.” Some are even willing to reject prosperity to appease this fear. Fear makes you want to do something, anything, immediately to appease it without thought, planning or research. I believe our commissioners are operating out of a sense of fear. They need someone to blame, someone to hold accountable for their fears, and they chose the developers. They are highly visible, easily blamed and easily hurt with the stroke of a pen – all to appease the fear they harbor.

I also heard comments and concerns about farmland being used up ... another fear. However, farmland has never been much of a sustaining profession in this area because of the nature of the land. Our area is not so much about the mountains, it’s about the people. People are our biggest asset, our largest crop. Many of us live off of our visitors.

Our new “farmers” are our developers, preparing the land for a new crop of people – the best crop we could grow. Let us help our new farmers who are knowledgeable about the land to prepare for our new crop. Let us consult them on how to care for our land, that supports our even more precious crop, and do it in a manner for the good of our land and our people. Our new farmers also love the land that provides their living and want to preserve it.

Our mountains will still be here – nature has a way of quickly reclaiming the land. Have you ever worked a garden? The scars caused by plowing and excavating can turn into a beautiful green place with clean, clear water, if we work together for our most precious commodity – people. Let’s not hurt one another in the process out of fear.

Jenny Lorenzen
Sylva

To the Editor:

I attended and spoke in favor of the moratorium Feb. 27 at Southwestern Community College.

I was absolutely amazed at the turnout and impressed by the willingness of so many people to do their duty as citizens of this great country by addressing their peers. Public speaking is a hallmark of a strong democracy. The more of us willing to participate in it, the grander the nation.

I addressed the division between attendees by saying I understood what depending upon a construction industry job meant: I grew up lower middle class, in a construction-supported family, and we all did better when more was being built. My first full-time job was in masonry; I was the shovel boy. I also stated my awareness of living at or below the poverty line, because as an adult on my own for many years, I have survived off of “less is more,” consistently.

What I did not say in my three minutes is that some of that poverty was self-chosen. I have been offered jobs that I knew were not good for the environment and/or the community, as well as jobs that would provide me with temporary satisfaction, yet lead to ill-health for me in the long run. So I sacrificed more money for something greater than my immediate desires; I yielded for the common good, or my own future good.

This is what is needed here and now: a personal six-month sacrifice for the future common good.

Of course sacrifice can only go so far. If you have a family, then you are their provider and you had better always take excellent care of them. This should go without saying. So it boils down to this: Those of us who were “branded” for wearing stickers supporting conservation (of which I was one); those of us who were talked about behind our backs in low voices (and I heard it, and so did my friends); were treated so simply because we, the “brandees” are trying to protect your, the “branders” land.

I have no financial interest in any of this strife. I wish not to control anyone, nor tell them what to do. I just wish for us not to destroy the future for the present. Not only all of this, but also let me include the fact that the country is moving, some by choice and some not, towards a more environmentally conserving lifestyle and agenda.

And demand increases supply, so if you define laws to create more conservation and environmentally responsible architecture and building practices, you will reap the benefits of increasing attractiveness to visitors and potential community members. Even now there are many federal financial aids to those wishing to use “green” building techniques. Why are contractors not thinking of the savings awarded their customers by including environmentally friendly construction?

So let us work together, not in anger, for we are all neighbors. I mean, who knows, one day your daughter might marry my son, and although “Family Feud” was a fun show, I don’t want to actually be involved in one.

Curt Collins
Sylva

To the Editor:

I am a lifelong resident of Jackson County and attended the moratorium meeting Feb. 27 at Southwestern Community College. It was my observation that when Ray Trine asked the audience to stand if they were opposed to the moratorium, the vast majority came to their feet. Many of them spoke, many did not. However, I didn’t hear anyone opposed to subdivision regulations.

The big problem here is the sudden stop. No one disputes the fact that irresponsible growth will harm the environment, and we have all witnessed this at one time or another. We agree that some changes need to be made, but we believe a regulatory plan can be installed without the need for a moratorium.

A moratorium was described as a temporary stop or delay called by the county due to an emergency. In the past year, our jail has been broken both into and out of. I’d like to say a word of praise to our commissioners for not proposing a moratorium to stop our Sheriff’s Department from doing their jobs for six months until a plan was put in place that would stop this immediate danger to our communities.

Our sheriff, Jimmy Ashe, did not design or build the jail. Thus I believe it is not his fault or the fault of his deputies – likewise it is not the fault of responsible developers and builders that our county does not already have subdivision regulations in place.

Please consider these thoughts, and if any of you vote “no” to the moratorium, please let the public know who you are, so we will know who to re-elect.

Michael Jennings
Cashiers

To the Editor:

In 1987, when I began practicing law in Jackson County, the old county Courthouse was on its last leg. Everyone who had anything to do with county government knew that. Handicapped people had no elevator, prosecution witnesses had no private place to talk to the prosecutors, defendants had no private place to talk to their lawyers, and security was compromised by the close quarters where judges and criminals were crammed into the same small places.

The register of deeds office, the clerk of court and every other office in the Courthouse were completely inadequate to meet the needs of government. Something needed to be done. It was every bit an “emergency” as what some claim as a justification for the moratorium.

The ultimate solution for the Courthouse crisis was a multimillion dollar Justice and Administration Center, which was carefully designed by a team of people with experience in the actual needs of governmental agencies, including judges, lawyers, architects and governmental officials.

Later, it became obvious that the old jail was failing to meet the needs of the community. Again, because of a clear and pressing need, the county sought the services of law enforcement personnel, architects, judges and others to carefully design a solution to the government’s problem.

What did not happen in either of these situations was what the county government proposes with the moratorium on subdivisions. The government did not shut itself down while a team of people with no experience in government sat around for six months thinking about what to do with the government’s property. County government continued to do the best it could while it sought a solution.

Were handicapped people denied access to the courtroom in the meantime? Sure. Were the officials in government offices and people trying to do business there cramped for space? You bet – I was there. Was security at the jail less than optimum while the new jail was being built? Of course it was. Were peoples’ lives and livelihoods affected in a permanent way because our justice and administration facilities were inadequate? Yes, they were.

I ask you this question: If the county government did not shut itself down to fix clear and pressing problems within its own system, what right does county government have to shut down private enterprise to fix a perceived problem of private enterprise?

Government exists for the benefit of private enterprise. Private enterprise does not exist for the benefit of government. Outside of socialist or communist countries, government cannot exist without private enterprise. And therefore, if you treat the business of private enterprise with one set of rules and you treat the business of government with another set of rules, you are being unfair, beyond all standards of decency, and you are betraying your oath of office.

There is an old saying: “Lack of planning on your part does not mean an emergency on my part.” Everyone knows the meaning and wisdom of that statement: If you wait until the last minute to take care of a problem, that doesn’t mean that I have an emergency. Irresponsible government turns that saying on its head, and says, “Government emergencies, created by the government inaction, will be the burden of private enterprise.”

Yes, the commissioners may have been elected on a mandate to bring order to the process of land development in this county. But none of the commissioners were elected on a promise to shut down free enterprise while amateur ordinance writers figure out how to do the commissioners’ job.

I kept a tally of the “pro-moratorium”/”anti-moratorium” speakers at the public hearing. The anti-moratorium speakers outnumbered the pro-moratorium by a solid 2 to 1 ratio. We don’t need a moratorium. We need the commissioners to treat the “problem” of subdivisions the same way they treated the situation with the courthouse and jail. “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”

Bill Coward
Cashiers

To the Editor:

We are writing this letter on behalf of the children of Long Branch Baptist Church.

Recently someone came into our church through a downstairs window and took the money that the children had been saving as a service project for our church. The church is in the process of buying new pews, and the children are hoping to save enough money to pay for one of the pews themselves. They have brought money they earned or were given and chose to give it to their church.

The children have a message for the person who took their money:

“We are not writing this to judge. We just want to talk about some of the things we have learned in the classroom you broke into. We have learned not to take things that aren’t ours. The Bible says ‘thou shalt not steal.’ “Another thing we learn about is forgiveness. We know that forgiving those that broke in is what God would want us to do, so even though it may be hard, we will do it.

“We know that we may never know who came into our church that night or who went into two other churches in our community. We do believe that God knows who they are and he knows everything they have done. We are praying that one day they will find themselves asking for forgiveness for the things that they have done.

“Finally, we wonder if they saw the picture of David and Goliath that hangs in our room. We have set a goal to buy a pew for our church and right now that looks like an impossible task. But with God, all things are possible. This has been a minor setback but we will still accomplish our goal. We can only hope that those who broke in need that money more than we do. We also hope that the next time they come to our church it will be for a service, and they will have a nice pew to sit on.”

Long Branch Baptist Church
Laura Brown, Lee Lillard and April Buchanan
Dillsboro

To the Editor:

Back in October, I wrote a Language Matters column titled “Roots and Bedrock,” focusing on the label “conservative,” recalling how my grandmother saved every button, every recipe, every morsel of food left on the table, how my grandfather cherished every square inch of his farm. That, I declared, is where real conservative values begin, and that language itself rests upon the foundation of what the Irish poet Seamus Heaney calls linguistic hardcore, which in turn rests upon the bedrock of place.

What happens, then, when pieces of that bedrock begin slipping away, I wondered. When whole landscapes are threatened with unimaginable change and destruction? Now, that question rings with profound urgency for us in Jackson County, not to mention all our mountain counties. Right now in this community we are confronting the reality of beloved landscapes being sold to the highest bidder for gated communities bearing names chosen by CEO’s and marketers living hundreds of miles away, assisted by real estate agents, many of whom claim to be representing the working people of this area, but care only about their own profits.

Perhaps it is time for those of us who love these mountains, whether our families have lived here for generations or whether we have moved here recently, to begin doing what our mountain poets, singers, and story-tellers have always inspired us to do – to speak to the truth of our bedrock. When this bedrock works its magic in our imaginations, we do not need anyone urging conservative values upon us, nor do we need outside groups telling us that we will lose our freedoms as landowners if we desire to see these precious areas kept free of uncontrolled development.

When I first wrote this essay, I drew upon the controversy over Swain County’s “Road to Nowhere,” saying that I suspect the ancestors whose bones rest in the graves at the center of the conflict know better than their descendants what conservative values really mean – a resting place rich with the things they once lived among.

Those same conservative values rest at the center of the controversy over the six-month moratorium that our commissioners have so wisely proposed. Six months for us to look around, say the names of our cherished places, let the consequences of their destruction sink into our imaginations. Only six months, a blip in the span of earth-time, in which to stop, take a deep breath, and ask ourselves what we want our children and grandchildren to see when they step out of their doorways and look around. To say over and over the names that we hope they will still be able to say, pointing to that ridge, that river, that valley with a sense of true ownership, which is ultimately stewardship, born from a profound sense of connection with their landscape.

Kay Byer
Cullowhee

To the Editor:

I attended the meeting Feb. 27 and was shocked to say the least at the amount of people that spoke in favor of the moratorium. Several of them did not even live in our county. I have lived here my whole life and have worked here since I was old enough to work. I depend on my paycheck to pay my bills. Without it I will lose everything I have. I agree that something needs to be done but not a moratorium. I have six small children that need a place to live, a car to drive to sports events, school and doctors’ appointments, and food. It might not affect us – the six months – but it will in the long run. I believe that it should be up to us, the people who live and work in Jackson County, not the county commissioners. No one has thought about the long term. Like I said before, I have six children that deserve better. If anyone of the commissioners can make it without a paycheck for six months then I will be more than glad to give them my bills to pay for those six months or maybe I need a job application. The fact of the matter is I cannot make it without a paycheck, and I don’t know many people that can. One more thing: “hats off” to all the truck drivers that drove their trucks down to show the real people who will be affected with this moratorium.

Krista Taylor
Cashiers

To the Editor:

I wonder were the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad officials got their law degree. They may have lawyers, but we have rights. We have Americans fighting and dying for the rights of people all over the world and we will fight for ours here in the United States. This is still America.

When you educate our law enforcement officials, be sure you show them your survey of GSMR right of way. Also, prove you have a right of way signed by any landowners. Then show them the taxes you paid on this land.

Now, tell them of all the services you provide for these landowners. Does GSMR have any right of way – except the one that they have tried to take by threats and with high-priced lawyers?

In closing, I have a right to protest on my own land. When I left my land, I exited on Western Builders’ land and if they want to arrest me, I will accept it.

I want to say that I will not be responsible for any property of GSMR illegally parked on my property.

Ed Stephens
Sylva

To the Editor:

I have read the scary ads in local papers and the frightening mailing from the Highlands-Cashiers Board of Realtors about the moratorium and consequent loss of jobs. Because I am a person concerned about fairness and compassion for all, I decided to examine the Jackson County building permits for the year 2006.

And here is what I found: in 2006 a total of 596 permits were issued. Just in the past six months 341 permits have been issued: 109 are permits for construction of buildings costing between $500,000, and $1 million plus. The building industry and permit department figures agree that it takes more than one year from start to finish for structures in this price range.

One year or more for 86 single family homes, six commercial structures and 17 multi-family homes that were not begun until June 2006 or after; 32 per cent of all construction in Jackson County from June 2006 cost more than $500,000 and takes more than one year start to finish.

A total of 211 permits have been issued since June 2006 for structures costing less than $500,000. The building industry and permit department figures agree that it usually takes about one year from start to finish for structures in this cost range. About one year for 190 single-family homes, 15 commercial structures, and six multi-family homes. Sixty-two percent of all construction in Jackson County begun since June 2006 cost less than $500,000 and takes about one year from start to finish.

Now we have 94 percent of all construction permitted and under way on Feb. 27, “using working people in the building industry,” to quote the Highlands-Cashiers Board of Realtors, that will continue to provide jobs and paychecks for more than six months from now. In Jackson County, no jobs will be lost because of a moratorium. The 94 percent does not reflect jobs permitted since Jan. 1, nor does it consider projects that can be permitted tomorrow on the estimated 10,000 lots already eligible for building permits.

So I say: Shame on the Highlands-Cashiers Board of Realtors and the others that are using scare tactics to serve their own greed; and hooray for our county commissioners for having the fairness, compassion and courage to move this county forward in a thoughtful and reasonable manner.

Edith Lyons
Cullowhee

To the Editor:

I grew up in a small town on the coast of South Carolina back in the 1940s and 1950s. It was a beautiful and unspoiled place in those days. There were beautiful vistas of marsh, river and ocean. Roads were draped with limbs of live oak trees centuries old. In some places you could go for miles without seeing the slightest signs of civilization. At this time, such natural places were a treasure for all the people, not just for some. Around the end of the 1950s this little corner of the world got “discovered,” just like many other coastal communities in the deep South. People from other parts of the country wanted to live there, so the real estate agents sold land and the developers developed it and the people came. They came in droves. The real estate agents, developers, and contractors prospered. Many became quite wealthy as a result.

Of course, the character of the place was irrevocably altered. Trees were cleared. Exclusive gated communities soon covered the sea islands with swanky homes and elaborate golf courses designed by big names in the world of golf. Condos and marinas lined the river banks. The beautiful natural vistas that had once belonged to all the citizens now belonged to the ones who could afford to buy them. The God-given treasures that had once drawn people to the area, over a period of time, were lost.

Locals were told development would benefit the people. They were told property taxes would decrease because of the new, expanded tax base. Just the opposite happened. Taxes on new, expensive homes went sky-high and taxes on more modest, original homes skyrocketed right along with them. Some “old-timers” even eventually had to move away because they could no longer afford to live in a county that came to have the highest taxes in the state. Today, 50 years later, little of the charm or beauty of the area remains. Had county officials stepped forward to take change by the hand through a reasonable policy of growth and development, perhaps such a result could have been avoided. No one stepped forward and so, instead, change took them by the throat.

I commend local officials for advocating a sane and dispassionate approach to development and growth in Jackson County. I hope county commissioners will not be intimidated by the threats (“next election: we won’t get fooled again”), half-truths (“it will cost you your job ... your property rights ... increase taxes”) and hysteria (“...bring our economy to a halt”). All our sentiments were recently expressed in full page ads in The Sylva Herald. As the man said, the first casualty in any war is the truth. Let’s stick to the facts. Residents of Jackson County are not asking for zero growth and development. What we are asking is to retain something of the character and beauty of a part of the world some of us have already chosen to call home.

Michael Jones
Sylva

To the Editor:

I am a landowner in a subdivision in Whittier, I wholeheartedly support a moratorium.

We all know that the mountains here in Jackson County are unique and exquisite. As a resident of 13 years, I feel blessed to live among such magnificent landforms. As I go about my daily errands, it never fails that my heart and soul are uplifted.

Whether we see this beauty as a gift from the creator or simply phenomenal expressions of a geological process, I believe it is this community’s responsibility to be mindful stewards of it.

When I see the unchecked development that is destroying this beauty, marring our viewsheds, degrading our creeks and rivers, I feel sad, dismayed and angry.

You know what I mean. Drive over Balsam, drive over Cowee, drive over Soco. Is this what we want for Jackson County? Should we allow six more months of this kind of unchecked development? I don’t think so. Why should we allow even one more day of this kind of “business as usual?”

Now, I know that there are responsible developers who care deeply about their impact on the land. At the Feb. 26 annual meeting of the Watershed Association of the Tuckaseigee River, two developers from Jackson County, along with several others from nearby areas, were honored with awards of recognition for their outstanding efforts to minimize soil erosion at their building sites.

On the other hand, there are developers who believe that as private property owners, they have the right to do whatever they want on their property, regardless of its impact on our community.

People used to think that if a creek flowed through their property, they could do what they like with it. Today, people realize you don’t just drop your drawers and do your business in the creek, because it is detrimental to water quality, and it impacts people downstream. Thankfully, straight-piping has become, for the most part, a practice of the past.

Likewise, it used to be that abuse of women and children at home was considered private family business and people looked the other way. Now, we recognize our responsibility as a community and work to end domestic violence.

Now it’s time to come together to stop the assault on our mountains. We can do this. Look at what we’ve done with the old Dillsboro Landfill. We have the Green Energy Park, which is so advanced with its use of alternative energy from waste that we have received an award from the Environmental Protection Agency as an outstanding project. That is a development strategy we have a right to be proud of.

I do think it’s important to address the legitimate concerns over the possible short-term impacts that a moratorium might create for some. I believe that impact, if any, will be minimal compared to the long-term benefits. I suggest that creative solutions and community support be offered to those few who may truly experience genuine hardship.

In summary, let’s get the facts straight. Best development practices make good environmental sense. Good environmental sense makes good economic sense; despite the old belief system, they truly go hand-in-hand. In the long run, we all benefit by maintaining or improving the quality of Jackson County; economically, health and safety wise, environmentally and in our quality of life.

I support the commissioners in doing the job they set out to do, the platform of responsible development they campaigned on and the reason they won.

I support them in finding creative solutions to minimize divisiveness over the moratorium issue and moving forward on implementing best development standards.

Let’s create something we can be proud to pass on to our children, grandchildren and the next seven generations. If we keep our vision clear on what’s good for our community as a whole, we will all benefit. Then perhaps in five or 10 years, Jackson County might win another award, one proclaiming us as an exemplary model of the best sustainable development practices; ones that preserved our incredible mountain legacy.

Kathy Calabrese
Whittier

To the Editor:

I have a message for people who want to move to the mountains.

I would love to have you relocated. I just have a couple of requests. Please show some respect for our history, heritage, customs, speech patterns, rivers, streams, mountain tops, valleys and views. Consider your neighbor when you site your house, put in your road and cut down your trees to enhance our view. In the process of creating your dream you may be destroying someone else’s. Around here we call that being a good neighbor; it is one of our customs.

There is a way of living here in the mountains that has a certain beauty and grace. It is not a constant quest for what is new, but rather an appreciation of the past. I would like to share this unique lifestyle with you. Help us preserve the very reasons why you would like to move to the mountains and ask your real estate agent to encourage the Jackson County commissioners to enact a subdivision moratorium and to take the time needed to draft and adopt a subdivision ordinance that would allow reasonable and responsible growth in Jackson County.

I would like to express my undying gratitude to all who lived here before me. They knew how to take care of the land – not to use it but to care for it, so that the next generation would find hope, inspiration, poetry, music, beauty and peace by just lifting their eyes up unto the hills.

Emma Wertenberger
Dillsboro