Paying for Housing
To the editor:
I am writing in response to the excellent letters in recent issues of the Independent about housing in Truro. It is refreshing to hear reasoned and civil discourse.
There are those, however, who continue to spread misinformation. I recently saw a sign that read: “Walsh Will Bankrupt Truro.” This is simply not the case.
The warrant to be voted on at the special town meeting on May 4 does not include any funding for housing at the Walsh property. Developers have multiple sources of funding for such projects. Federal and state tax credits provide the bulk of these funds. The developer must also pay Truro property taxes, providing a town asset.
In reality, a very small proportion of the cost of affordable housing development on Cape Cod has fallen to the towns. And any funding that might be allocated for that purpose would have to come before town meeting for approval.
Many have asked why the article deals only with recommendations. That is exactly what the Walsh Committee was charged with. It gives the select board direction, without which they would be free to do whatever they choose.
Vote yes on the Walsh article to provide that direction, and rest assured that this is not a runaway train. No one is trying to develop Truro to the max. It’s all about preserving a diverse community.
I have been here for almost four decades and have seen so much change. I have watched people who grew up here forced to leave. I am watching my peers move away as health care and housing for the elderly dissipates. This is not the vibrant and diverse community I remember and love.
We need to look forward rather than back.
Jane Lea
North Truro
The writer was a member of the Walsh Property Community Planning Committee but does not speak for that group.
Not All Ferry Riders Are Tourists
To the editor:
Re “Ship Speed Limit Sparks Local Economy Worries” [April 4, front page]:
I read your article on the possible changes to ship speed limits with concern. Part of my concern is with the dollar figures thrown around on what reducing ferry speeds will mean. I believe that those figures are grossly inflated.
How many passengers on those ferries spend $6,500 during a week in Provincetown, as Town Manager Alex Morse stated? I own a home in Provincetown and live here about half the time, traveling between here and Boston on average every two weeks all year long. In the off-season and on days with high seas, I take the Peter Pan bus. On nice in-season days, I use one of the two ferry companies. I also occasionally drive.
There is an inference in the article that everyone on the ferries is a tourist coming to spend money. In fact, many of the passengers are people like me who live here and people coming to visit those of us who live here. We aren’t rushing out to spend thousands of dollars per week.
In decades to come, people aren’t going to care if some businesses in Provincetown take a financial hit for a couple of weeks because of slower boats in the interest of saving a species that has been navigating the seas here longer than we have.
I hope NOAA decides to do the right thing for the North Atlantic right whale, regardless of the financial consequences. Save the whales!
Jim Vogel
Provincetown and Boston
The Benefits of a Thriving School
To the editor:
For the first time in many years, there is a contested race for Provincetown School Committee. I am one of the candidates. My family and I are full-time residents, and our son is enrolled in the Primary Years Program at the Provincetown International Baccalaureate Schools.
The strength of our school is one of the best-kept secrets in Provincetown. The school has an incredibly talented, dedicated, and loving faculty, a devoted and hardworking administrative team, and an invested and committed parent community eager to support the school’s mission, vision, and values.
I believe strongly that the members of the school committee have a responsibility to ensure that every resident and visitor to this town knows that the “building on top of the hill” houses one of the best public schools in Massachusetts. The economic and community benefits that a thriving school can bring to a town are profound.
I have dedicated my career to education, and I understand the importance of supporting our school community as we prepare students to be lifelong learners, critical thinkers, and contributing, successful members of our society.
Sean Ganas
Provincetown
‘Bullstuff’ From the Globe
To the editor:
Re “Short-Term Sins” [April 18, page A2]:
Thank you for the thoughtful letter from the editor calling the Globe out for their bullstuff.
The “sin tax” on tourism, now in force long enough that the market has long since adjusted to it, was likely imposed on an industry whose pricing was considered to be inelastic rather than intended to dissuade consumers, and that has proved to be the case.
And no, the boom in short-term rentals is not likely to benefit locals. It is as if the housing crisis on the Cape is somehow not considered legitimate. It can look that way when facts are ignored. I’m grateful you put a spotlight on the Globe’s piece and this issue.
Gretchen Von Grossmann
Provincetown
Those ‘Senior’ Parking Stickers
To the editor:
Reading Ardis Markarian’s recent letter to the Independent [“Sticker Shock,” April 11, page A3], I was aware that I, too, was feeling uncomfortable vis-à-vis the new “senior” parking stickers. I decided to examine that feeling more closely, hoping to uncover what was disturbing me.
It has turned out to be more a matter of equity than of age disclosure; I’m 73, as I frankly tell anyone who asks.
In many other cultures, elders are treated with dignity and respect for many reasons including their depth of wisdom and the accumulated contributions they have made to their societies. Not so in American culture, where elders are often on the receiving end of scornful comments and demeaning jokes. The expression “past it” comes to mind.
Why, then, would seniors feel good about having their status broadcast to the world on the front windows of their vehicles, without their consent, when other age groups are not identified in this way? It’s hardly like carrying a Senior Seashore Pass in your wallet.
Khristine Hopkins
Provincetown
