Small NC Mountain County: Old timey Dems. face Rep. developers killing the town for profit.

[TalkingDog]

(if cross posting is not allowed, delete, but this is an important issue for many people)

Why you should boycott Cheap Joes Art Supplies

I have nothing against art, art supplies or even artists.

I do have a problem with greed that destroys people’s lives, small towns and the meager unspoiled green space we have, habitat for struggling wildlife and the natural beauty of the Appalachian Mountains.

There is a small Appalachian town about 10 miles outside of Boone NC. It’s called Todd. Todd is so small it’s never even merited a 2-lane road. When you go there you will see 2 SUVs traveling in opposite directions trying to daintily pull into the ditches so as not to get their tires muddy.

There is a general store and a small bakery/craft-goods store. And that’s about the extent of Todd. People like to visit, people like to stay. And so far those people have respected the small, quite space that Todd creates in the world. They have created a small park for music and visitors. They have held local parades where, in a town of 90 people, you’ll have 100 participants. There is a sense of community and shared goals.

But now Joe Miller, owner of Cheap Joes Art Supplies and 3 other “developers”, including one fellow known as “The Godfather of Boone” want to sell “exclusive” home sites that put Todd “at your (the buyers) feet” in a development called Elk Creek Mountain.

“Some of the sites are literally on top of the mountain with every view spectacular.” says the sales pitch. And that is part of the problem. One of the blights on the scenic Appalachians is view-killers. People who feel they deserve an unfettered view of the mountain vistas and in the process destroy the view for anyone looking at the ridgeline.

Another blight is over-development. This area is under environmental stress already. The headwaters of the New River, the second oldest river in the world, start in Todd. The smog is killing the trees. The wildlife habitat is disappearing and there is a persistent drought over the South East that is so bad that the government is offering natural disaster assistance. Development for the sake of development is part and parcel of the problem.

This housing is not needed. Most of the homes in this county, including these, are 3rd homes. Yes, you read that right. THIRD homes. Or as Joe’s sales pitch puts it: “This development is not for the masses, but for those select individuals…” These will be houses that sit empty from November to June.

These houses are a waste of our resources. They are a waste of our environment.

They will drive up property taxes on the people whose families have lived there for generations. Those people will have to sell their birthright property because they can no longer afford to live there. And if Cheap Joe, The Godfather and his cohorts think that this development will not spread, as they claim, then their greed is blinding them to the realities of life.

The residents of that gated acreage (you know the acreage on the mountain that the residents of Todd can no longer hike on?) will not be content to shop at the General Store at the foot of the hill. They will want a posh grocery. They won’t want to drive the 10 miles to the nearest gas station; it takes too much precious time and their Hummers and Escalades won’t make it that far.

And before you know it, Todd will be just another strip mall in the mountains.

Write Mr. Cheap Joe and tell him he’s made enough money selling his art supplies. Ask him to consider what he is really doing to Todd, it’s people, the New River and the environment. Just so he can be even richer than he is now.

Greed is destroying our way of life.

[e-mail]
http://www.elkcreekmountain.com /



(Thanks. And pass this along to all your artist friends.)


My Favorite Master Artist: Karen Parker GhostWoman Studios

[american_typeculture]

1. Preservation of the viewshed is important.

The place where one can see an example of this is at Mount Vernon. Why do you not see condos across the river from Mount Vernon? Because the park service thoughtfully bought up the land so as to preserve it the way that Washington "would have seen it". This can be done in other places. Nobody needs to clear cut 10 acres of land on top of a mountain and put their house up there. It's greedy fucks like this who destroy the quality of life for the rest of us.

[rateyes]

2. Kicking this thread because...

I can't get to Todd to kick Cheap Joe's ass. My grandmother's family, and much of my history is in that beautiful area.

:kick: & R