Thank you for a few lines to express my concern about Senate Bill 949 that would eliminate the authority of the Town of Boone to zone properties adjacent to its town limits. The bill's author and those supporting him may wrap the issue all up in the banner of freedom. But that cry is just a cover. A cover for what? A cover for those whose real aim is to make money — in this case money from the sale and development of property adjacent to Boone's corporate limits. In and of itself, making money is not necessarily evil. But the value of the land in question is often determined by how it may be developed in light of zoning under the current law. The town's authority to zone adjacent territory is stepping on some developers' toes and that is the fundamental reason for the current bill moving through the N.C. Senate. Why shouldn't someone be able to place an asphalt plant next to a neighborhood? Or maybe a race track? For many, if not most, there is the democratic ideal of the common good. This is what undergirds community planning. In fact, community planning should be extended to all of Watauga County — not just Boone or Blowing Rock. We do not live in isolation even if some with money power and political power think so and would use this power not for the common good, but for their own narrow self interests. Hopefully, the state legislature will see the light and stop this piece of very self-centered legislation.

Thomas Jamison
Boone