Soon our Planning and Zoning Commission will meet to determine if Neighbor to Neighbor can build a appropriate new facility on land generously donated by Christ Church. There has been a lot of information put forward by Neighbor to Neighbor about their need and the proposed facility. There has also been a lot of misinformation put forward by opposition to the project. We know. We have read it all. The letters to the P&Z Commission, letters to the editors of our town newspapers, editorials, comments by lawyers. We were shocked by some, disappointed by others, and even embarrassed by what some people said. Emotions are obviously high among the opposition, but that should not allow for rudeness or disrespect.
Neighbor to Neighbor is going through a lengthy process before Planning and Zoning to see if they can design and build a structure that fits their needs while at the same time complying with P&Z regulations. If the building fits within their regulations, it should be granted final approval to be built. Neighbor to Neighbor has done a tremendous job of meeting with the neighbors and the property abutters early on in the planning process (despite public claims to the contrary) and made changes to the placement and design of the building based upon their comments. They continue to offer an open line of communication to the abutters, as evident in Nancy Coughlin’s (Neighbor to Neighbor’s executive director) recent op-ed in this paper.
There are several lines of argument occurring simultaneously during this regulatory and approval process. We are not going to debate them here. Emotions have gotten the better of most of the opponents. We would be more sympathetic to them if their arguments were less emotional and disrespectful. Some of their attacks on our fellow citizens were out of line and did not portray our community in the best light. We do applaud Christ Church for both their generosity in allowing Neighbor to Neighbor to build on their property and their willingness to put themselves forward in the regulatory process.
Of course, an organization that provides food and clothing to the impoverished is at the heart of Christianity. We were disappointed with some who chose to criticize the church for their generosity in allowing Neighbor to Neighbor to operate from its campus.
If the new Neighbor to Neighbor facility is to be built on Christ Church property, then everyone involved in the debate will need to learn how to live with it and one another. It is time for the rancor to stop. Recently someone reminded us that “good fences make good neighbors,” the quote from Robert Frost’s poem “Mending Wall.” It has been a while since we studied poetry, so we went back to look at the poem. It is a narrative of two men walking along a stone wall in spring to repair the winter’s damage. One believes in the benefits of a wall between neighbors, the other questions it. One believes fences keep neighbors happy with one another, the other believes fences are what alienate us from one another.
During the debate before Planning and Zoning, there has been much discussion about fences between the Christ Church and neighboring properties. How best to create a fence, whether it be wooden or a barrier of trees, to block the view of the proposed building from the neighbors? While a fence may be a necessity to ensure the neighbors are comfortable with where the Neighbor to Neighbor building will be, we would strongly encourage it to be a “mending” fence. We would further encourage all involved to come together to mend, heal, forgive and learn to live together again as good neighbors. The mending fence should be something everyone has a hand in building. Built together, it will be strong, lasting and represent that even after vigorous debate we can once again come together as a community.
