Meaningless Apathetic Planning Council

On October 18, 2010, The MAPC (Metropolitan Area Planning Council) had a meeting in Salem, open to the public, on the discussion of which areas should be developed vs. conserved.   Leslie Courtemanche and I attended the meeting and shared information on why it is important to preserve Spring Pond Woods, in Peabody, Lynn and Salem.   We were supported by four other Salem residents who carried the same concern.  Two others spoke, and another two drew on the map... which areas to conserve.


For the record, this information was shared with the MAPC:
1.  Spring Pond Woods was voted by the public as being one of the "1000 Great Places in Massachusetts".  It is a culturally important place.
2.  Archeological resources are found on site. 
3.  Historical resources, such as the trees pertaining to one of America's earliest arboretums.  
4.  An important regional wildlife corridor, stated by the City of Peabody Open Space Plan
5.  Wildlife sightings by Leslie C., and bird of prey sightings
6.  Maps of vernal pools 
7.  Watershed areas and topographical maps, giving reasons to protect the hills around Spring Pond.


After the MAPC collected information from the public, a draft was presented yesterday, December 9, 2010.  However,  the planning council did not incorporate the information into the new draft.  Instead, the areas of conservation were worsened, whereas Camp Lion's site is proposed to be nearly half developed over (as seen in orange on map below, lower left parcel).  Seems like officials of Salem get to have their way with the MAPC, because on the first map presented back on October, there was no defined area clearly expressing the site to fit a proposed Lowe's and Super Walmart.   MAPC is the same regional planning agency that came up with the sceptical traffic study for the area, refuted by Mayor of Lynn.   If any of this make sense, please someone explain.  

A Salem resident wrote in:
"Comment is due by Dec 17 (to MAPC), and can be emailed to jblaustein@mapc.org .
They (MAPC) say they will be posting material at www.mapc.org/north-shore-planning.  Someone (at the meeting last night) requested they include notes they took from the first meeting, as it was felt they did not incorporate much of the input that was given, and not just about Spring Pond.  I think everyone in the audience felt frustrated as this seemed very much like a planning exercise with no associated actions or authority to implement."

A few weeks ago I received a warm letter and package from an art school, stating the Senior Project Director from MAPC referred me to them, to assist the school's program, based on my wonderful work, research and community involvement.  I figured, since I had left such a great impression with Steven Winter, Senior Project Director of the MAPC, that maybe my work regarding Spring Pond Woods was taken seriously.


With this disappointing news, there is good news too... well, no news is good until the area is preserved.  I can not make a public statement yet on what the news is, but it would surely make a good press release, when the time is right.

 peace on