It would be nice if we could stop growth
Boy,
I would like to stop all the growth. Since my family moved
to Cave Creek ten years ago, the population must have soared
30 percent. The growth along the northern boundaries of
Phoenix is even more dramatic.
What
is happening to our quiet western town? It would be nice
if we could stop the growth. How about a building moratorium?
Unfortunately, that is only a temporary fix, and we would
most likely end up in a bunch of lawsuits. The town would
have to prove that there is a very severe lack of public
services, and therefore, needs time to correct them.
Our
country was founded with a strong premise favoring private
property rights, which are violated when a municipality
tries to limit them by actions such as a building moratorium.
Regretfully,
regardless of what we do, population growth will occur and
ten years from now our community will look a lot different
than it does today.
The
best chance of preserving our rural western culture is to
have a proactive town council that has the foresight and
will to defend and protect Cave Creek’s unique lifestyle.
I
believe that this process is already underway, as the current
council is trying to tackle the big issues facing the town.
To me, these are:
–
Gaining control of water resources.
–
Annexing the land north, east and west of the town, as this
will reduce the potential housing density.
If
this does not occur, history shows that neighboring jurisdictions
will increase the density tenfold. The annexation also allows
Cave Creek to substantially increase the amount of open
space from 27 percent to 40 percent.
Saving
our desert from development is one of the best ways of keeping
our rural nature. Cave Creek, in stature, is a minor leaguer
playing in the big leagues with the likes of Scottsdale,
Mesa, Peoria,
and above all, Phoenix.
Let’s
not forget Global Water. The present council has shown that
it can hold its own against these outside forces. They are
unified in the mission to preserve Cave Creek, and now it’s
the voters’ responsibility to keep them together, so they
can finish the job.
Joel
Smith
Cave
Creek
