To the Editor,
I feel compelled to weigh in on the apparent schizophrenic nature of the Selectmen’s policies toward businesses. I found it ironic that at the same meeting that the Board tabled four entertainment licenses for Woodman’s, over concerns about whether amplified or acoustic music would be allowed, the Board also reappointed the “Economic Development Committee.” What is the point of having an Economic Development Committee if the Selectmen and Planning Board are actively working to limit or prohibit business activity within the Town. At the Town Meeting in May, the Selectmen were silent as the zoning articles were debated. Likewise for the EDC and Finance Committee, despite the fact that businesses subsidize funding our school system which it seems agreed that we cannot afford.
The board has also supported the Planning Board’s crusade to bring zoning restrictions on commercial enterprises in Town, capping a three-year total moratorium on new or expanded business in Essex. At the May Town Meeting, the zoning articles which all passed, created new hurdles for businesses by increasing the number of activities that require a special permit, and expanding the criteria the Board uses to consider said permit applications. These restrictions will make it more difficult and expensive to initiate new businesses. Given that businesses are sprinkled throughout Essex now, the residential zoning map that the Planning Board is intending to present in the fall, will surely render many business properties non-conforming and will make it harder for those businesses to manage and adapt their properties to changing business environments as well as prohibit any new business uses within those zones. Is this the way we should be going in this Town? The Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce recently woke to these issues, recognizing the negative impact these initiatives have on business and alerted their members to weigh in.
The Town fathers brag about collecting $200,000 in meals tax per year while restaurant after restaurant goes out of business without anyone questioning whether that money could have made said restaurants viable and saved them. The EDC’s signature initiative to install decorative lighting on the Causeway failed, but it didn’t matter because the lights would not have done anything for the local businesses and the proposal just illustrated that the EDC does not have its eye on the prize.
A few years ago it was recognized that working from home was beneficial because it limited the spread of communicable diseases and saved on the cost and emissions from commuting. The hostile anti-business environment being fostered in Essex combined with the demand for residential housing will inevitably lead to less and less people being allowed to work from their homes, more commuting, less people available to serve on our call fire department and skyrocketing school expenses as the student population grows. With these issues in mind, I respectfully request that the Selectmen stop supporting these restrictive zoning proposals. Also, please loosen your restrictions on amplified music and speaker systems for our restaurants. These businesses are not spending money on musicians for no reason. They believe that they will be more profitable and might survive these changing times. I don’t believe these licenses will disrupt the peace of Essex as long as they end by 8 p.m.
I have had the privilege of serving the Town in several capacities over the last thirty years. I was able to do so because I worked from my home. Please do not make it more difficult for other residents to do the same.
Respectfully,
Edward T. Neal
Essex
