Letters to the editor: 09/13/01

Quiet neighborhood should be preserved

To the Editor:

We awakened this morning to what can only be described as a strange meteorological phenomenon. Neither the weather forecast nor the conditions could justify the odd wind that was blowing.

Our interest was sparked to the degree that we undertook an investigation of the matter that led us to Old Field Cemetery. It seems that the wind was coming from the resting place of Jeter Snyder and Lois Snyder Morris. They were spinning in their graves.

We are following with much interest the current wranglings over the Morris property, as it has come to be known. When our great uncle Jeter Snyder bought this land, it was pristine pasture "in the country" near the town of Sylva. The original home, now owned by Kevin and Laura Pennington, was sold to W.C. Hennessee in 1938.

Jeter Snyder and his wife, Lois, then constructed the home next door... the property that has made its way into the news and real estate listings. In 1940 (when the home was completed), Uncle Jeter and Aunt Lois and others in our community who were establishing family homes knew little about the concept of zoning. They depended on the good sense and integrity of their neighbors to insure that property values were protected for the whole community.

As, unfortunately, we can no longer depend on our neighbors for good sense and integrity, we must entrust our local government with these qualities as they decide the "highest and best" use of the land. Our leaders in Sylva have established such a plan after countless hours of work, thought and community input.

Now the greed of heirs, the greed of Realtors, and the desperation of a local utility threaten the future of this once quiet residential community, zoned residential by our town leaders. We can only hope that the integrity and good sense of these leaders will prevail, and that the hours of planning for the common good were not spent in vain.

And we hope that this torturous wind emanating from the spinning in the graves of Lois and Jeter can be calmed, and that they can rest in peace knowing that their legacy of good sense and integrity will live on. After all, as the poet said, it is a foul wind that blows nobody good.

John and Janice Sutton

Sylva

Support for proposed Southern Loop

To the Editor:

The recent announcement regarding the installation of a traffic bypass around Sylva should have been started at least 25 years ago. I have witnessed the same traffic conditions in Florida at least twice in my lifetime.

I grew up in Sebring, Fla. My dad was 100 percent opposed to building the new U.S. 27 on the west side of the lake from town. He predicted Sebring would die.

However, five years after the new U.S. 27 opened, he was elated. You could now find a parking space within a block of your merchant, and the continuous stream of through traffic no longer existed. He admitted he was wrong. He had not realized how the traffic jam had taken over the normal operation of the small town. Sebring continues flourishing today because the through traffic does not enter the center of the town.

The second town I observed was Lake City, Fla. In the middle 1920s, the Florida DOT was thinking the same as our opponents of today in fighting the bypass. The DOT cut 25 feet off the store fronts in Lake City to widen the road so more cars could pass through Lake City with less delay. This made things worse instead of better, resulting in the bypass finally being built by necessity.

Today, during the daylight hours, anyone going through Sylva will tell you large trucks, delivery trucks and other through vehicies create a useless traffic jam and delay to other drivers in their attempt to pass through Sylva.

Many strange drivers cause added accidents because they do not know ahead of time which are the through lanes. Delivery trucks double parking in the area before and after the paper mill sometimes block both directions of the traffic flow, bringing a halt to all traffic movement. One left turn attempt as you head through this area many times stops all movement in both directions.

Anyone opposing this bypass obviously does not need to go through Sylva during the busy hours of the day. We need to get behind the DOT and get this bypass into being, instead of the small town lack of thinking now being exhibited by the petitioners to delay this construction. Delays add to the cost of road building. Currently the only time I fight the Sylva traffic is due to the location of the library.

We are paying for better roads, and foot dragging is increasing their costs when built. Let's build the bypass and make the living conditions better and the accident rate in Sylva less.

Thank you,

Frank Young

Cullowhee

Ramsey will be remembered

To the Editor:

The contributions of Liston Ramsey to Western North Carolina are a lasting legacy and model of responsible and caring stewardship. He will be missed but not forgotten.

During our formative years, Southwestern Community College especially benefited from his vision, leadership and personal commitment to make sure the best education possible was available to the citizens of Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties and the Qualla Boundary.

That commitment resulted in the construction of facilities such as the Allied Health (Balsam Center) Complex and other building and program projects at Southwestern for the past three decades. Much of the success Southwestern presently enjoys is a direct result of Speaker Ramsey's efforts and vision.

While Speaker Ramsey will be missed, his accomplishments will provide a visible reminder of what dedicated leadership and hard work can provide.

Sincerely,

Cecil Groves

President

Southwestern Community College

Tired of Sylva's traffic

To the Editor:

I am leaving the town of Sylva. I just thought you might like to know why. It's not that I won't miss these quiet mountains; I will. When I moved here three years ago, it was so my kids could see more of their grandmother and because my then-husband often waxed poetic about what a wonderful, quiet town Sylva was.

But after moving here I realized that the traffic rivals that of Baltimore and Washington, D.C. And it's not just the outsiders as many people say. I have witnessed an outrageous number of careless drivers from this very town.

Just a few of the things I have watched with open-mouthed astonishment are those who drive at blinding speeds through pedestrian areas, especially parking lots; people weaving in and out of traffic and pulling U-turns in the middle of the road; cell-phone users; and, my personal favorite, the man who balances his checkbook while driving down a busy N.C. 107.

In less than one year I have been the victim of two accidents, one a hit and run. Prior to moving here I had never been in a car accident. I have had so many close calls that I carry a religious symbol in my car for protection. I live in constant fear that one day I will be in a major accident and my children will be seriously injured.

So I will be leaving the town of Sylva. I take myself off to the big city where at least I don't have to pray for divine intervention every time I drive.

Georgia Adkins

Sylva

Action required to stop ginseng thefts

To the Editor:

In August and September of every year, Western North Carolina is overrun by thieves. Hundreds roam our mountain counties. These are not bands of criminals who come from outside the area; they are local residents, our own neighbors. Many people who live relatively honest, law-abiding lives most of the year turn to a life of crime for a few weeks every fall because they know it is easy, safe and very profitable.

I'm referring to ginseng thieves. Contrary to what some people claim, digging ginseng is not "wildcrafting." It is not the same as picking berries for a pie or digging sassafras to make tea. The people who dig ginseng do not keep it for their own use, and they do not prepare tonics or elixirs to sell at craft fairs. They take bags of roots directly to dealers and sell them for several hundred dollars a pound.

Limited amounts of ginseng can be dug legally on National Forest land if a permit is purchased. It can also be dug legally on private property with permission from the landowner. I will acknowledge that out of the hundreds of people digging ginseng, there must be one or two rare individuals who do it legally, but I have not yet heard about them.

Most ginseng diggers steal the plants from National Forest without obtaining a permit, or they buy a permit and then collect three or four times the amount they are entitled to. Even worse, they sneak onto the property of their neighbors and steal every ginseng plant they can find. We have twice been the victims of ginseng thieves. Several hundred dollars worth of roots have been stolen from our property and we have virtually none left. Plants are stolen almost every year from several of our neighbors. I know people who came home from church one Sunday to find dozens of holes in their yard where ginseng had been growing, less than 40 feet from their back door.

Hundreds of plants have been dug illegally from the National Forest near our home. I have had ample opportunity to observe the damage done by these thieves. They are not interested in preserving healthy populations of ginseng. They want to get all they can before the next thief comes along to take whatever they leave. They take immature plants along with mature ones, sometimes digging up every plant in a population. They seldom plant the ripe fruits, and they frequently dig plants before the fruits are ripe so that they can stay ahead of their competitors.

From the point of view of the thief, stealing ginseng is a nearly perfect criminal activity. It requires no tools other than a sharp stick and a sack. The only skill or intelligence required is the ability to recognize one kind of plant. The stolen property is small, lightweight, easy to conceal, and virtually untraceable. It can be sold legally, with no questions asked.

Furthermore, local law enforcement agencies make no serious effort to investigate ginseng theft. (I was told by one well-armed deputy that he would not follow a trespasser into the woods because it was too dangerous!) Without the assistance of the police in gathering evidence, it does no good for an individual landowner to file charges unless he literally catches the thief in the act of digging up plants. Even when a thief is convicted, the fine is usually much less than his illegal profits for the season.

I see no easy solution to this problem. I am not opposed to the legal, ethical and sustainable harvest of ginseng, but the theft and destruction that are now commonplace have to be stopped.

Maybe we should require anyone who sells ginseng to obtain a license and to report the names of property owners and the number of plants collected from each piece of property. Anyone reporting false information should lose the right to obtain a license. Fines for theft should be increased so that they at least exceed the thief's profits. Law enforcement agencies should make a greater effort to help people protect their property from thieves.

Meanwhile, I advise anyone with wooded property to post it and patrol it as often as possible. Encourage your neighbors to do the same because large blocks of posted property allow fewer points of access for thieves.

Finally, if you know of someone who digs and sells ginseng, watch him closely because I assure you he is a potential thief.

Mike Ivey

Cullowhee

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