| It was reassuring to read recently that a | | | | welcomes competition from Lowe's ( kind of like |
| prominent developer at the south end of our | | | | the battle of titans), but what about the smaller |
| village's shopping strip has promised not to turn | | | | stores that sell lumber, paint, hardware, appliances, |
| North Conway into another Portland. That's fine, | | | | et cetera?Within this context, what can be done? |
| but I wonder what impact Borders, Barnes and | | | | For starters, we need to start attending meetings |
| Noble, or Starbucks might have on some of our | | | | and ask tough and provocative questions. We |
| local independent merchants who have worked so | | | | need to begin acting on the answers. We need to |
| hard to bring money into the town rather than | | | | walk the talk. For example, why are we not at |
| send it out. I wonder what Home Depot and | | | | least discussing controls, restraints or temporary |
| Lowe's and the latest new big box (which is one | | | | moratoriums such as those implemented by many |
| box too many) will do to some of our local | | | | other New Hampshire towns? Has anyone looked |
| businesses and to our new and scenic | | | | into the admittedly controversial subject of |
| North-South Road.Make no mistake, owning a | | | | impact fees? When are we going to get serious |
| business is essentially about making money. That's | | | | about the concept of planned and managed |
| the name of the game. Everyone has a right to | | | | growth? Is it in the town's Master Plan? Has the |
| do it, regardless of size. Indeed, my own business | | | | Master Plan been given a recent reality |
| interests and holdings are about making money, | | | | check?Above all, where is our Capital |
| but the money comes to me; it does not go to | | | | Improvement Plan? Where is our Capital |
| corporate headquarters in Arkansas, Georgia, | | | | Improvement Committee? Has the advent of the |
| North Carolina, Natick or Newton, Mass. And I | | | | so-called Infrastructure Committee (whose |
| spend a lot of that money at the local book | | | | members apparently are appointed) become a |
| shops and cigar store and at the local hardware | | | | reason for not having a CIP? Can we slow down |
| and paint stores in the greater Conway area. I | | | | the waiver process, use them as negotiating |
| strongly suspect the money at the independent | | | | tools, and get a lot tougher about granting them? |
| book stores in town goes to the local owners, as | | | | Can we start at least thinking about saying no? |
| does the money at the many coffee shops. | | | | One can only speculate as to what would have |
| These are local businesses serving the interests | | | | happened had the planning board recently called |
| of the greater Conway area. They operate with a | | | | Lowe's bluff on the parking waiver.When the |
| long-term focus and, I believe, with a goal of | | | | Master Plan was put together awhile back, few |
| improving our collective quality of life. While they | | | | could have envisioned the explosion of commercial |
| serve tourist as well as locals, their revenue | | | | and residential growth that is now taking place, |
| churns within and throughout the valley; it does | | | | particularly at the southern end of the strip. |
| not flow to some out-of-state corporate | | | | Something needs to be done or the Master Plan |
| headquarters. They are part and parcel of and | | | | simply will become two dimensional, and a drive |
| contiguous with the beautiful fabric of the valley. | | | | south on the strip may well become an exemplar |
| And they, like so many others, have more reason | | | | of what inrushing money can do. New |
| to care about retaining what's left of that fabric. | | | | construction project after new construction |
| That, and their entrepreneurial spirit, is what sets | | | | project, new hotel after new hotel, big box |
| them apart.Can the same be said of the many | | | | stores, fast food, strip malls, an abandoned |
| large companies and chain hotels that are on the | | | | service station? Can the ugly billboards be far |
| way? Does the Hampton Inn have the same | | | | behind? Perhaps a drive through Windham, Maine, |
| interests as the local bed and breakfasts? Do | | | | on 302 might provide a glimpse of what could |
| they have the best long-range interests of | | | | occur.If those who live and own businesses here |
| Conway in their peripheral vision or are they | | | | fail to act, don't expect those who represent the |
| looking through fiscal periscopes? Do the owners | | | | big boxes to do it unless, of course, you believe |
| and directors of Lowe's, Home Depot, the | | | | they really care. If those who love our natural |
| Hampton Inn, et cetera, reside here? Are their | | | | environment, our lakes, mountains, and forests fail |
| representatives who come before the planning | | | | to act, don't expect those who represent the |
| board people who have a sense of what the local | | | | chains to do it unless, of course, you believe they |
| nature of our town is all about, or are they | | | | really care. Perhaps they do care. But if you don't |
| corporate site selection specialists who couldn't | | | | act, it will be what it will be."He who speaks the |
| care less about what all this may be doing to the | | | | truth should have one foot in the stirrup." ?old |
| natural beauty of our town? Do they care about | | | | Appalachian sayingTed Sares, PhD, is a private |
| green space or will murals on walls or green roofs | | | | investor who lives and writes in the White |
| do? Will roundabouts, traffic circles, or rotaries | | | | Mountain area of Northern New Hampshire with |
| solve the problem they will have caused? Would | | | | his wife Holly and Min Pin Jackdog. He writes a |
| they even consider green space if they were not | | | | weekly column for a local newspaper and many |
| forced to do so by the planning board? Just what | | | | of his other pieces are widely published.His works |
| are their objectives? Do they really care? Maybe | | | | focus on issues and themes dealing with |
| they do. Time will tell.Now then, if some of our | | | | socio-political topics, business and economics in |
| local merchants are forced to shut down (and | | | | which he advocates a free market approach to |
| hopefully this will not be the case), the likelihood | | | | capitalism, patriotism, and matters dealing with |
| they will be replaced by others is slim, since the | | | | individual freedom.They are frequently inspirational |
| national chain stores will likely continue to be the | | | | in nature and sometimes reflect the Objectivist |
| negative competing force that makes this happen. | | | | philosophy of novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand. |
| One can only speculate as to what will be left but | | | | He also writes short stories that feature ironic and |
| whatever it is, it will be different from what it is | | | | surprise twists. |
| today. The developer of Home Depot says he | | | | |