To the opponents of FASNY

[wpRez]

I was posting to the discussion on a Patch website article, but someone told me about this site and I thought it would be a better place to continue the discussion. Here is the original discussion and my response:

http://whiteplains.patch.com/articles/h ... proposal-2

My response:

I think there's two issues here. One, is the legal issue of what the school or city can or can not do. I'm not even going to try to comment on that because I'm not educated on the intricacies of zoning laws, etc. Philosophically though, I'm more of the mindset that government shouldn't have the right to block private enterprises because they think something is "not good for the city", etc. I know its more complicated legally, but in general this is my belief. One question for you experts, something I was never clear on. Does the current zoning law allow for the school to be built, and everyone is trying to get the law changed to block them? Or is it the other way around - that the zoning law is preventing the construction, and the school is trying to change it to allow them to build?

The 2nd issue is something that I view as an opinion that should be separate from the legal considerations - that is - "is the school a positive thing for the city and the community"? Now, if your backyard overlooks the construction (which I believe is true for the most outspoken opponents), its clear that you probably are against this idea, and I understand why - but I have a hard time taking most of your arguments seriously. Honestly, you have zero to no credibility when you post in all caps, shouting other people down about how this is not good for the city. Do you really expect people to believe you are somehow fighting some kind of gallant battle for the good of the city when you happen to be directly overlooking the site? You are hardly an unbiased participant in this discussion and I am willing to be that you would be oblivious and uninterested in this issue if it was on the other side of town.

That said, the way I personally feel, as someone not living in the neighborhood, is that this is a positive thing for the city. I know it seems shallow, but when listing our city's features to prospective residents, having a school like this makes our city appear more cultured and sophisticated. Also, instead of fighting the school every step of the way, why not work with them to iron out the details of how this nature preserve would operate? To me, this is the most positive aspect of the proposal. Yes there may be some increased traffic on Ridgeway for an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon but after a short time you will probably not even notice it. In the end the city will get a huge open public space which is what everyone wants, and another cultural institution we can add to our list.

I know I will be shouted down and called naive or uninformed, and I don't know all the intricacies of the proposal as well as most of you, but I repeat that you are not making your case against this proposal very well in my opinion. If you work with them and negotiate properly, this can be a benefit to the city and who knows - your home prices may even go up. Let's not fool ourselves - this is what it is really about...isn't it?

~wpRez

[Jackie93]

Wow. Those people sound crazy. I don't live anywhere near there so I'm gonna stay out of it. Thanks for posting.

Jackie