Members of the Sandy Spring and Ashton community are letting their voices be heard about SSARPC's Town Meeting held on January 26.
"I have attended many of the meetings relative to the proposed Ashton Meeting Place. Meetings held by the developer included the developer, the architects, and a traffic consultant. Experts were on hand to give first hand interpretation and direct information.
Tonight, I went to an opposition meeting held by a group called Sandy Spring Ashton Rural Preservation Consortium. What an absolute insult to everyone's intelligence that they would hold a meeting about the Ashton Meeting Place and dare try to answer questions about what the developer and State Highway Administration are doing for that project, without them present.
For the Preserve Ashton panel to speak for the developer and State is an absolute injustice and a simple way for them to push their personal agenda on the community. They are on a smear campaign full of misinformation. Their models depicting the design of Ashton Meeting Place couldn't have been more inaccurate. I have seen the model proposed by the developer and it wasn't even close to the monstrosity depicted by their own artist.
This developer has proposed a center with personality and longevity. He has changed his plans to meet community concerns. If the opposition keeps this up, he just might feel his efforts aren't worth the trouble and we'll have another CVS in our back yard.
I find their tactics disgusting. Next time they plan to debate the issues, I suggest they have representatives of the developer and State Highway Administration present. That way, the community will hear the real story."
