Comments on: Does Council Member Fawcett Favor Developers Over Citizens?

By: Pattyduke@$1

Pattyduke@$1 — Thu, 09 Feb 2023 02:06:16 +0000

Lynne Johnson,
Your comment was well said.

By: Ruth+Casey

Ruth+Casey — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 14:15:53 +0000

This city is being developed much too quickly! The roads are not developed for the traffic we have now much less adding to it. When, I move around in the city, I am amazed at the huge condos and other housing going up everywhere. I’m not sure we are going to have any wooded areas left in Suffolk at the rate they are being destroyed. Increase the population, and the crime will follow! We will begin to look like the big cities that are suffering from crime. We will have long-time citizens who have paid taxes for 40-50 years leaving for safety reasons.

By: Shar

Shar — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 21:53:20 +0000

This sounds a bit one sided and an arrogant outlook along with a diminished respect for those of us that have chosen to live here. Mr Fawcett is this about dollars and not lives?

By: Lynne Johnston

Lynne Johnston — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 21:30:48 +0000

Maybe it’s time to vote to remove council members who are unwilling to represent the citizens that put them in office in the first place. Their only job is to make decisions based on the will of the people. Builder’s rights and wants are secondary to the desires of the citizens of Suffolk. We have a process that represents the people, not special interest groups.

By: Ken Parsons

Ken Parsons — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 20:45:19 +0000

Yes, I must say that I have supported Councilman Fawcett the last few elections, he has always been available and helpful when I thought there were issues that needed to be addressed. But some of his comments lately have been disturbing. Yes, there are some negative groups out there that I don’t think you could please no matter what you do. Just recently I read some comments that the city needs more shopping, restaurants, and mom & pop stores (which many don’t support, that’s why there aren’t many left). But the city is not in the retail, entertainment or restaurant business, they are there to manage the city. I know growth is going to happen and you can’t stop it, but they can do a much better job at managing it. We do need change in our city government. I supported a new candidate for council in the Cypress Borough, I had supported Councilman Bennett for years, but after 28 years I didn’t think he was representing the people as he should and was more responsive to businesses that benefited from his voting on city issues. So I am sure with the comments he has made, people will think before voting next time.

My concern with the Council is the lack of infrastructure to support this growth. We are the only city in the state that has torn down a crumbling bridge on a regularly traveled state road and has never replaced it because of politics and money influence. Driver Ln has the last 2 parcels of farm land being developed now for another 125 homes while Driver Ln is one of the narrowest roads in a residential area, do you see road improvements on these 2, no. The speeding and reckless driving here is terrible. But it can’t be informed because the police department is so undermanned. That is a direct problem that is a result of the Council decisions behind closed doors.

I could go on and on, but it is in your hands, I have instilled in my children how important it is to vote, and more importantly at the local level, because they are the ones that make the decisions that affect our everyday lives. The Council should install a 1 year period for no new development and focus on roads, bridges over water and trains, our police department , school system and internet competition. Fix these and you can encourage growth. It may take on some temporary debt and hurt our credit standing that can be repaired. If we don’t get better infrastructure you are going to start to see a massive amount of vacant homes and deterioration of the neighboors