Letter to the Editor



What are the responsibilities of the Marysville City Council? I would argue the most important responsibility is to represent their constituents (the residents of Marysville). Any decision Council makes should be for the betterment of the citizens of Marysville. I ask how annexing 263 acres betters the lives of the existing citizens of Marysville. This is the question that Council should answer. The added traffic and the added burden on the school system are two major areas where the current people living in Marysville will be negatively impacted. There will be other negative impacts as well some small, such as longer times while shopping and some large, such as higher crime rates. There is a whole litany of other negative consequences that brevity forces me to not list here. I can think of no benefits for the current people of Marysville that the annexation of 263 acres for a development with over 600 houses will give. Some may say that housing costs are too high and having more houses will reduce the cost of housing in Marysville. Basic economics shows this will not be the case as does Mr. Berbee’s own analysis. These 600 plus home will not reduce the price of homes in Marysville or make it “more affordable”. For the sake of argument let’s assume that the 600+ homes would reduce the price of housing in Marysville. Is this a benefit to the people of Marysville, having the value of their largest investment (their home) reduced? Growth for the sake of growth in no way betters the citizens of Marysville’s quality of life.

There is also the issue of the developer presenting inaccurate information to the Council.
I have watched the meetings online and was shocked that the developer presented inaccurate maps at the second reading. This was after Mr. Higinbotham pointed out (and the developer acknowledged) the inaccuracies of their presentation at the Planning Commission meeting the month before. Even if the land is annexed and no large housing development is approved what is the Council annexing and why? Why would the council annex land before they know the impact it will have on the area’s wetlands? What would the purpose of the annexation be? Why does Marysville need more area? Again, growth for the sake of growth in no way betters the citizens of Marysville’s quality of life.

The only people this annexation will benefit are the current property owners of the annexed land and the developer (who does not reside in Marysville).

 

Robert Hammond III
Marysville, Ohio

One response to “Letter to the Editor”

  1. Robert Coy says:

    Vietnam Veterans is hosting a, Agent Orange, Burn Pit, Pack , information and time for Question and answer . .This will be at Union County Veterans Auditorium 233 W Sixth Street , December 16th at 10 AM

    Robert Coy
    District One Director
    rcoy10@yahoo.com
    740-602-1693

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