The following was sent to us by a reader –
Fellow Residents,
Have you heard about the Eastern Gateway Priority Planning Project?
If you have a life, chances are slim that you have.
Here’s a link below, which I would encourage you to take a look at.
THEN, I would suggest that you ask yourself the following questions:
1. Why would ANY owner of a single family home in Reading Massachusetts be in favor of adding affordable, high density housing to this community?
2. How does the inclusion of high density affordable housing INCREASE the sense of community within this town?
3. How does the influx of THOUSANDS of people into this community (who have to no loyalty or sense of ownership to the actual community) impact the $86 Million dollars you’re being asked to float for a Killam rebuild “because we have no space”?
How much of that space will be used by these people coming into the town for those services. How many MORE services will we need to provide for these people because we’re lowering the barrier of entry into this community.
4. If you just bought a 3,000 square foot house for over $1M in this town- how do you think “high density”, “low income” housing is going to impact the value of your property?
5. How does importing people into this community overnight affect the performance of our school system nationwide (there was one time not 25 years ago when Reading Highschool was a top 50 high school IN THE COUNTRY.
Wrap your head around that.
Lastly, ask yourself one more question?
Why is it that the people who made you rent your trash barrels, pay more “for the privilege” to use water, want you to pay for another school, build a senior center, develop land for a walkway that is disgusting to walk though and it’s (currently) still “brand new”- who want your electric costs to be sky high with their Net Zero initiatives, NOW want to import thousands of people who have no idea (nor care) about Reading (as a community).
If THIS is how your tax dollars are invested- if you’re wondering why these single family homes in this town are still fetching premium prices it’s because the rest of the state hasn’t figured out that the reason we all chose to live here- has been slowly destroyed bit by bit.
So the question is- why have you continued to allow it?
The window for “getting a clue” is minuscule at this point. So that’s why I’m raising the issue.
The more you know….
https://www.readingma.gov/950/Eastern-Gateway-Priority-Planning-EGPP
Justin Perry
Whittier Road
