BELLOWS FALLS — Re: “Shame, shame, shame on The Commons” [Letters, Dec. 21].
The Rockingham zoning board did not merely apply state-required criteria in its decision not to approve the Bellows Falls Warming Shelter. It stretched them all out of shape in order to please a small but vocal group in the village that is disgusted by those poorer than themselves and strongly prefers not to see them.
The zoning board rejected the location based on the transparent claim that the shelter would create too much traffic. On the main street through town, to an ample parking lot that draws hundreds of cars per day, the shelter would bring two or three more cars - driven by the volunteers, since the clients for the shelter mostly don't have vehicles.
The board also forced one member to recuse herself because - get this - she stated before the hearing that she thought the consideration of extra traffic to the location was absurd. Well, it was.
This shows the three members of the board who voted against the shelter to be not just heartless, but seriously dishonest people.
And it shames the town because our Selectboard, whom we voted for, was negligent in appointing such heartless and dishonest people to a position where they represent us all.