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I am astonished at the reaction to Proposal B by some professors emeriti
who are writing editorials for the newspaper. These editorials give undecided
voters numerous reasons to stay home or vote no, then lamely conclude
that the authors will be voting yes, despite their grave misgivings about
the proposal.
Proposal B is a political initiative, not a doctoral thesis,
and as has often been said, "politics is the art of the possible."
It seems to me that the mayor and his advisors carefully examined the
failed countywide open space initiative of 1998 and determined what was
the maximum open space preservation that could likely be achieved in the
face of determined, well-funded opposition from the homebuilders.
Everyone's pet theory is not included. I am reminded of a comment that
one of our former school superintendents made: "Just because your
advice wasn't followed doesn't mean you weren't listened to."
The proposal is not a panacea, and the mayor and his allies realize that
in-town density, soccer fields, affordable housing, and a plethora of
other land-use issues will remain to be dealt with after Proposal B (hopefully)
passes. This election is about one question only: When our area
is completely 'built out' 30 years from now, how much green space will
be left? It isn't about affordable housing, soccer fields, or
any other distracting irrelevancies the opposition is dragging into the
debate, in a deliberate plan to confuse and alienate voters. The
correct way to vote on this plan is clear: VOTE YES on Proposal B on Nov.
4th. Each generation gets an opportunity to designate choice
green space in our area for preservation. Because of forward-looking responsible
citizens and civic leaders of the past, we have the Ann Arbor city parks,
the Metroparks, and such beautiful state land as Pinckney-Waterloo Recreation
Area in our county. The Greenbelt is our turn. Our
grandchildren will thank us for preserving lots of open space and farms
around the much denser and more-populated Ann Arbor of the future!
Most of the claims and implications from the homebuilders range from misleading
to downright false, and their authors are well aware that they are spreading
untruths. For example, the Nov. Observer mentions (p.25) that the builders'
claim that Proposal B will slash current park funding is "completely
false". This is the claim that is on their signs ("Save OUR
Parks--Vote No on B). Likewise with the HBA chairman's absurd claim that
the initiative is illegal.
The builders can't use an honest slogan, like "Sprawl is
Good--Vote No on B", so they are using expensive poll-driven
ads that cleverly raise doubts and confuse voters, so that voters will
make a 'safe choice' and vote NO. There is no positive theme to the No
campaign, just a batch of unrelated (and often contradictory) negative
assertions, each one of which is designed to persuade 50 or 100 voters
to stay home or vote no on election day.
The builders found out that Ann Arborites are worried about affordable
housing, and they are using this as a wedge issue to split progressive
voters away from Proposal B. Ask yourself: Do you think the homebuilders
are desperately fighting the Greenbelt because it will derail their plans
to build a lot of affordable housing in the townships? A brief
drive in the townships will convince you otherwise....
If we allow the deceitful campaign by the homebuilders to destroy this
excellent proposal, they will laugh all the way to the bank, immediately
forget about affordable housing, and no other community in Michigan will
even try to designate a Greenbelt, because the builders will be able to
say: "We defeated it in Ann Arbor, so we can defeat it anywhere!"
But I want to close with a positive vision: This community is a desirable
place to live because of our quality of life: pleasant neighborhoods,
an educated work force working at progressive businesses and institutions,
vibrant and diverse people, beautiful natural areas, excellent schools.
We who are fortunate enough to live here enjoy many amenities of a small
town and of a large city. Proposal B is one small part (but a
vital one) in ensuring that we pass on this quality of life to succeeding
generations.
UM
Urban Planning Dean strongly supports Proposal B. click here.
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YES on Proposal B Nov 4
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