Zoning stimulates debate across the board

The following letter was received via e-mail at our offices in response to the reply to a previous letter printed in the May 28th edition of The Herald Newspapers in this section. Marcus, I must give you an A+ for your ability to twist and spin a subject with all the accuracy of an armchair politician. Yes, I think we should clear some things up. Let’s begin shall we? I’m sorry you’re mystified as to how zoning would cheat the average land owner so I will give you a quick example. There is a “rule” on the books now that says you have to have so much land per dwelling unit such as rental cabins, OK so far so good. But now let’s say you have 1 acre and would like to put 3 cabins on it, you cannot. However, the wealthy landowner who has 30 acres can put more cabins on 1 acre of his land than you can on yours simply because he has more land. If you don’t believe this, just drive out Jayell Rd. until you come to a large group of cabins on your left. Don’t worry, you can’t miss them. You see, the regulations allow you to place more units on 1 acre simply because you own more land, now if that doesn’t favor the wealthier landowner then maybe my math is confused. Please remember, this is just one quick example. There are many other ways to mystify you about how the average person can be harmed by over regulation and control of what we are allowed to do with our own property. Every regulation that has been introduced to make our lives better has usually been started by someone with good intentions and that is why it was adopted by those who trusted the person not the regulation. Once the seed has been allowed into the garden it is up to those who tend the garden as to what it will grow into. Many problems arise from people who want to plant seeds just so they can say they did it. They are not the ones who must live with the future of weeding and cultivating and making sure the seed doesn’t evolve into a bitter harvest and find that the garden spot has been ruined by what was thought to be a good seed for everyone. The person who loves potatoes fills the garden with them because he thinks he knows what is best for everyone. So your “Simple Common Sense Zoning” is a myth. The animal does not exist! You make the statement that “Weigel’s, Food City and Ruby Tuesday’s are currently backing away from new development in Seymour because much of the prime, major road fronting property is already too close to residential areas for them to operate their businesses.” This makes no sense! Why wouldn’t they be able to operate their businesses because of proximity to residential areas? Don’t you need close proximity to people in order to thrive as a business? You thank me for “making your point”. You’re welcome since it seems you can’t make it on your own. You refer to the commercial/residential jumble you say we all are suffering because of a lack of zoning. Zoning doesn’t stop the merger of commercial lives with residential lives. Nothing will stop that unless you find a way to create more land and then offer people an income without having a job. My concern is people like you who have a voice that is louder simply because of your position with your newspaper, but you don’t look at the facts before you begin singing the praises of a long lasting regulatory movement that once it has been voted in will always be there even if there is no real substantial plan of what to regulate and how. By the way, I was there in the D.C. area when Fairfax exploded into a huge commercial area and I have made the 2 hour beltway journey of 5 miles and all of this commercial confusion was created while under the strict guidance of some of the most comprehensive zoning controls in the nation. It didn’t seem to help those people keep the commercial/residential jumble from happening to them. You say that you would argue that city zoning would add value to property. Go to Knoxville and drive through some of the neighborhoods that cannot afford to remodel because the restrictive nature of the zoning makes it cost prohibitive for an investor or homeowner to attempt renovation. You also say” The number of people not born in Sevier County are on the verge of outnumbering the people who were.” It seems to me that they are moving here because they like what they see and the way things are here. If they wanted to move to a heavily restricted and over zoned area I believe they would not move here. Instead, I believe they are moving here because of the lifestyle we enjoy and the feel of freedom we cling to in spite of people like yourself who wants to create more control just so you can say you were part of it without even knowing what you creating. By the way, I find your referral to Indian Raids offensive and uncalled for. The Native American population in these hills and mountains were here long before your family brought you here and if there was any raiding going on it was from people like you who thought you knew what was best for them too. The Native Americans trusted and believed that there new neighbor had good ideas that would make their lives better and so they went along with it. When they saw what was happening and began to try to stand up for themselves they were accused by people like you of things like “Indian Raids” and they were slaughtered. You see, it all starts from a small seed. Yes Mr. Newspaper man, we all have a voice but the ones with a louder voice must also carry more of the burden of responsibility of what they say because of the impact they have. PS. Another assumption you made was that this email originated from the office of a realtor. Once again I must clear things up for you. The term Realtor is a trademarked term and when used by any business as reference must only be used by a member paying a fee. I don’t know of anything in my original email to you that would give you the idea that I am a paying member of that organization so you must have assumed. Also, if you really are from Seymour, Shame on you for barking for the snake oil salesmen when you don’t even know what’s in it! Wayne Johnson [See response to this letter on the editoral page titiled (Zoning Stimulates)]