When you can no longer see the stars, maybe you’ll care too

Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2013 10:01:24 -0500 (EST)
From: Kattorney
Subject: Re: Chatham Chatlist #4795

Taylor Kish – Surely you understand the difference between a single  homeowner being forced to rewire their home before selling it, and the wish to thoughtfully and effectively regulate a development that is going to increase the population of Pittsboro by tenfold?  If you don’t, then no one can give any credence whatsoever to anything you say.  I cannot see what is  wrong with wanting to make sure a development of this scope and magnitude is done in a way that protects the surrounding areas.  It is going to forever   change the face and demographics of Pittsboro and Chatham County, so wouldn’t it  make sense that we, as the current custodians of those places, make sure all  citizens are protected?  Like making sure there is room for lower income citizens so that a higher tax base population doesn’t drive them out of the  county? (which is not quite the same as making you give a room in your house to  a homeless person).

I share a property line with this huge  development.  I do care about these things, very much.  I don’t  disagree on some things such as LEED, however, there has to be SOME standard and  since LEED is what we have then it is a way to regulate.  If we don’t  regulate, our rights will be trampled as this development will come in and do  whatever it wants.  That is what makes no sense – allowing rampant  uncontrolled development at the whim of the developer.  That would be a  dereliction of duty by the Pittsboro town commissioners and we would all  suffer.

This past weekend a young woman visited Chatham County.  She is the girlfriend of my stepson and they live in Chesapeake VA.  She was amazed that we could see the stars.  She cannot see the stars where she lives.  She now wants to move to the country, because she was so amazed by  what the stars looked like.  She was truly amazed. You can pooh-pooh green initiatives all you want, but sometimes we cannot see the value in what we take  for granted.

When you can no longer see the stars, maybe you’ll care  too.

Kathie Russell