To the Editor:

As a happy and grateful resident of Colton, for the past 25 plus years, I am writing to voice respectful opposition to the process by which the Colton Town Board has decided to bring a Dollar General store to this charming hamlet.

I’m also surprised by the lack of transparency and the lack of community involvement regarding some of the key discussions surrounding this issue.

On July 7, 2016, Bohler Engineering (DG) wrote a formal letter to the Town Board requesting that residential property be re-zoned to allow for retail trade. On July 20, 2016, at the board’s request, the Town Planning Committee reviewed the request and voted 5-to-1 against it. The Town Board then called a “special meeting” Tuesday, July 26, at 10 a.m., at a time during which most people are at work or taking care of children.

Meeting announcements are apparently listed in the “legal” section of the Watertown Daily Times, if one knows to be looking for any such meetings. Nine people attended: four from the Town Board, four who work for the Town or work on Town Committees, and an individual representative from Bohler Engineering. No other community members were in attendance.

During that meeting, according to minutes posted on the town’s website, the four board members voted to create a text amendment to re-zone residential property, despite overwhelming opposition from the Town Planning Committee. Subsequent public hearings allowed residents to voice a variety of concerns about bringing a DG to Colton, but with the sneaky re-zoning provision woven in, the wheels were already set in motion.

Now the DG seems to be a done deal if the corporation meets certain safety and aesthetic conditions. (One condition already predicts the DG’s probable ten-year life span with a mandate that the corporation maintain the building after it closes for up to 20 years.)

My biggest concern is that the DG will be situated directly across from the Colton-Pierrepont Central School and St. Mary’s Catholic Church, in a location that gets quite a bit of car, truck, and foot traffic. Students and others in all kinds of weather conditions will have to cross a busy Highway Route 56 to get to the store. It’s worth noting that several years ago, an 18-wheeler crashed into the very house where the DG will be located, because the rig was going too fast through town and was trying to avoid something in the street.

Colton has made a name for itself in the past 25 years with a growing list of activities and events for residents and tourists, including Winterfests, annual quilt shows, a summer outdoor concert series, barn quilting, and whitewater kayaking (and frog jumping!) contests.

I understand the desire to encourage small businesses and the need to increase the town’s tax base. Can’t we do better, though? I think so, and I’m happy to help figure out a viable alternative.

Colton residents, please come to a Town Planning Board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 24, at 6:45 p.m. in the Town Office Building on Main Street to continue this important conversation.

Catherine Tedford

Colton