How Can Bolton Manage Growth? Should We Have To? There are those in Bolton who seemed resigned to the potential doubling of Bolton’s population. Who think that our scarce resources and volunteer government can somehow cope and manage. Tom Miller disagrees. He thinks we should be finding ways to ensure that this doubling does not occur. He thinks we need not accept planning studies as gospel and try to manage their projections. For, that has the result you are now seeing in Bolton: having to deal with development proposals for our largest tracts of land on other's timetables, not ours. Having to react instead of pro-act. There is a different road. Our quality of life depends on maintaining reasonable growth while preserving those elements that make our lives here special. Bolton need to institute a policy of preserving our character. It will require a commitment on the part of the Town to actively institute an APR strategy and or an open space acquisition strategy. These would, in effect, control growth by reducing the number of residential lots, which bring with them the inevitable school and public safety expansion issues. To afford to implement this strategy, a tax base expansion, not focused on residential growth, but centered on retail and commercial uses and located in areas with the best infrastructure (such as Rt. 117), is key. To allow such an expansion, especially on Route 117, a comprehensive study (which would include pedestrian and safety issues along with economic development opportunities) needs to be initiated immediately. This study should have been initiated when the traffic improvements along Rt 117 were initially proposed. The corridor study should also include both Stowe and possibly Maynard. Let’s not put the cart before the horse. Let’s not wait until we are under the gun yet again. Tom Miller has the vision to see this opportunity to pro-act in our best defense – and the guts to seize it.
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