Date: Wed, 26 Feb 2014 09:01:10 -0500
From: leela ellis
Subject: Reston Isn’t Columbia
Recently I wrote a vignette on the Chatlist describing my personal experience of Columbia, Maryland. I wrote about how I experienced it 40 years ago, and how I experience it now. I write from a deep memories and love of what that area of Maryland used to be. I write from more than an impression glimpsed on a brief trip around the Baltimore Beltway.
I did not call names; I wrote memories and current impressions. I do not live in And, I might add, Reston is not Columbia. And Fearrington is not Pittsboro.
From: Lynn Zempel
Subject: Chatham Park Comparisons
Because we live in Fearrington, we have stayed out of Chatham Park debate. But for those who point to the failures of Columbia, MD, I suggest a trip around the Washington Beltway to Reston, VA. Reston has thrived, with housing, businesses, good restaurants, etc. The town center has been updated with many stores, and close-by attractions, including a multiplex. Before we decided on Fearrington, we looked seriously at a townhouse in that neighborhood. Chatham Park could work, and as I think development along 64 is inevitable, you may be trading a planned community for a scattering of various developers’ ticky-tackys. I can also see a artsy, artisan, laid-back Pittsboro as a draw for people from Chatham Park. Okay, I’ve said all I intend to say, and y’all can go back to name-calling, etc.