Planning Board Completes Public Hearing…but were they listening?

Many questions go unanswered…

At meetings held on September 14th and 21st, the Planning Board heard from concerned residents regarding the creation of an Industrial C Overlay District for SYSCO.

These meetings filled the Public Library meeting room to capacity. The meeting on the 14th allowed little more than one hour for questions, many of which were never directly answered but taken “under advisement” by the board. At the meeting on the 21st SYSCO brought with them two hired guns, a.k.a. consultants. The first spoke on the plan for storm water run off, and the other, an appraiser told the abutters and people who live in close proximity of this proposal not to worry about their property values, they may even go up!

Anyone who has been involved in these meetings and discussions knows…this is so much more than a zoning change. This is a change that will open the door into a very dangerous period for the town of Lakeville. We are truly at a fork in the road in terms of how our town will be developed. There will be no going back.

Do we throw away the hundreds of hours of hard work done by experts to develop our Master Plan?

Do we abandon our vision of appropriate development for Main Street in the northern part of town?

Do we open our doors to a company that has one of the largest carbon footprints imaginable?

Do we sacrifice our neighbors, their quality of life, and their financial future?

Do we forever change the very character of our town that made it so attractive for many of us to live here, raise our families here and call this home?

Do we loose our souls?

Do we do all this for the small gain in tax revenue that will be spent in town services to support this very development?

Nothing will be improved, and no one will enjoy a better quality of life. None of the challenges we face as a result of these difficult financial times will be overcome. There will be no net gain…for anyone, except possibly some self-absorbed selfish individuals willing to support this fiasco for some personal gain, in the shallow hope of feathering their nest in a business relationship.

So…Who’s right and who’s wrong?

The facts speak for themselves. I hope the citizens of Lakeville do their homework and show up for the test on October 18th at the Special Town Meeting.

The choice couldn’t be clearer…Be Heard…VOTE NO!