Dear Editor:

Change is many things — painful, exciting, inspiring — we all experience it. Having been raised in Woolwich, I once swore I would never live across the Wiscasset bridge but a certain Boothbay resident that I'm sort of fond of changed that.

I have watched many changes to neighboring communities, the City of Bath mostly, the changes in BIW's footprint on the city, and the addition of a roundabout at the Old Bath Road and Congress Street intersection. My first reaction to this, with zero research on my part, was what the heck are they doing? Who in their right mind thinks that a roundabout is going to fix the daily mess?

I found out that experts were in their right minds, that I had no justification in my criticism of the project, and a traffic headache was not just alleviated but eliminated. The Bath intersection is not exactly the same as the proposed change for the Common, the pedestrian factor is a huge issue, but this change is going to happen nonetheless, be it this year or five years from now. We, as a community, not just Boothbay but all communities on the peninsula, are affected by this change, and have the opportunity and responsibility to make the needed change. I agree with some comments that knowing the full development plans for the surrounding properties would help in making educated and thorough decisions on the design and construction of the roads. Let's do this once and get it right, but maintaining the status quo on the current configuration is irresponsible. I have yet to hear an alternative that addresses all the factors.

I don't know Paul Coulombe, just like I don't know a lot of residents, but I know that there are hundreds of communities across the state that would love to have our problem of growth and potential. He is investing in the peninsula, he's investing in our future, he's investing in us, and I, for one, appreciate it. Let's not squander this opportunity.

Todd M. Barter

Boothbay