Blog: Let's Check Out Supermarket Plan

The possibilty of a has people talking. The following is a Letter to the Editor, which I wrote. It appeared in the Southampton Press last week. Please take some time to read it. I would love to here your comments.

I am writing regarding an unsigned letter that was distributed by the Westhampton Alliance of Merchants stating in part that the proposed rezoning of land to permit the construction of a new supermarket along Old Riverhead Rd. in Westhampton Beach "would be disastrous for our village."

Why wouldn't the person who wrote this letter, requesting our support, stand behind his or her strong opinion and sign his or her name to it? I'm sick of getting anonymous letters in my email and home mail; whoever feels this way should stand up and be heard.

There are errors in the letter. No one ever said they were moving the Waldbaum's away from Sunset Ave.  The way the village is treating the developers is wrong.  Whether or not we are for or against this business, our rights to be heard should never fall on deaf ears in a democratic society.

I think it's sad to consider as the anchor of Main St. The north half of Sunset Ave. sits in the dark and many stores along Main St are dark. Anyone can drive south on Old Riverhead Rd., pass the dilapidated blue municipal building by the train tracks and see the many empty stores, empty gas stations, empty restaurants, empty Nationals building, empty bowling alley, and empty real estate stores.  No one is running to rent these spaces until our economy takes an upturn, which is not soon enough.

Our voices should be heard to bring in viable businesses to our village to increase traffic on our Main Street.  A person owns property and would like to develop it. Why is that looked upon as evil?  This man deserves to be heard and for him to hear what people have to say.  That should not be taken away.  This village has a bad reputation for being anti-business; we all know that, but no one should deny someone the chance to be heard.

I can only speak for myself, but I have been in business for over 26 years on Main Street and have seen many stores open and close.  I've been able to grow my one store into three and have learned to change with the times. I love living and raising my son in this village and I would love to see people not fearing the unknown.

Next time you drive in or out of this village, take a look at the empty stores and think about the future of our village.  I am not saying if I am for or against this development, but I live within walking distance to it and am definitely interested in hearing more about his plan.