Dear Editor,
I was glad to see Mr. Champoux issue a statement regarding the Global project. What I was not glad to see, however, was the position he took and defended. As the Chairman of the Wilmington Board of Selectman, and as a resident, his words are clear. He, simply put, will not commit to a stance on this issue (as stated in the Town Crier published 09/06/2017) under the reasoning that “he don’t have the facts.” For those who may have missed it, he stated in his letter to the editor that this is not the time to issue an opinion. Representative Miceli and other officials have had time to be at the meetings and make their opinions, which match that of the majority of residents, known. According to the Chairman, he stated this project is currently in the hands of the planning board and that he have limited information, before delving into a number of issues he takes with the opposition to the Global proposal. And to this, I wish to respond directly to Mr. Champoux.
Given your Letter to the Editor and previous statements, I find it would be premature to jump to judgment about how those opposed are voicing their concerns, given a lack of any in-depth discussion on this matter from you and your board. And before you say again that you need time and information, it is not hard to see from this details at this point that such a development would be a huge detriment to the town. You are to be the community voice as the Chair of the Board of Selectman, and serve as a rational middle ground for projects that have both pros and cons (not just negatives as in the case of Global.) For me, and many, your move to dismiss the views of those opposing the project is an insult to our valid points and concerns and is quite offensive. To openly state that anyone associated with“Wilmington Families First” creates an us versus them mentality is incorrect, and only serves to create division. We have been voicing our concerns, only to be ignored by those charged with listening to us. With limited response from you, the planning board, and others, we were forced to come up with other ways to get our voices heard, such as letters to the papers, signs, and meetings. Stating the signs to be a cheap ploy and offensive is absolutely unfounded; they are not a problem, but rather a symptom of being ignored. We residents have a right to voice our concerns, and have been trying to. A lack of response from our town officials has forced us to turn to other venues to show our opposition.
Aside from your critique of the opposition’s organization, I also have a few other issues with what appears later in your piece. You, quite scathingly, state without doubt that this is “NOT A TRUCK STOP” after pleading with the opposition to wait for “real facts” to emerge. I disagree that this will not be a truck stop, despite the developers promises that it won’t turn into such. I believe the phrase for this would be “a rose by any other name.” You may be correct when you stated that this project at this time is not in the selectman’s jurisdiction, but it is the job of a Selectman to anticipate the issues before the town. At the moment, this project is very much the defining local issue, and to this resident this rose does not smell sweet.
To me and many others it already sounds like you will support Mr. Newhouse and Mr. Caira. Nobody is doubting their allegiance to Wilmington, as you suggest, but I remind you opposed to those two are hundreds of neighbors and residents in Wilmington who love the town just as much as you claim Mr. Newhouse and Mr. Caira do. I also take issue with your statement that an office building, with car capacity reaching into the hundreds may be built. To us, those opposing Global, we deal with real, tangible plans instead of theoretical proposals which have not been filed or even drawn up. I must also note that Attorney Newhouse also brought up the theoretical proposal strawman at a local hearing, but also failed to fool anyone.
I understand that the Selectboard has other very important issues to address in town, but to the people who oppose this project at this time, Global Gas is just as important. Rather than refuse to meet with the people who feel strong enough to pen letters and raise signs, you should schedule a meeting with this group and talk it out. You talked about how we need to talk to each other and learn from one other, and I have yet to see or hear one person opposed to Global voice their refusal to discuss with you, the planning board, or anyone the implications of this project on the town. Considering the residents of Wilmington elected you to be one of their voices, let them speak and maybe listen. It seems that you have all the facts from the representatives of this Global Gas proposal. Now it’s time to listen to the people of Wilmington you know, the ones that live on the outskirts of town.
Gary DePalma
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