Counter to the signs recently sprouted in town, I will be voting YES on ARTICLE 16, and encourage you to do so as well. Article 16 authorizes the Town of Camden to negotiate the sale of the Tannery site to Cranesport LLC.

I live in the Tannery neighborhood, have done so since 1993, and I do care deeply about the site’s future.

I also care deeply about the ongoing viability of our beloved town as being more than a pretty, winter-quiet bedroom community for wealthy retirees. Perhaps I shouldn’t – I already have my house, have raised my kids here, am living the retired lifestyle. Why should I care about those who come after? I’ve got a happy lifestyle in a pretty place. Lucky me.

I have proven my deep interest in the tannery site by serving on all three of the tannery site redevelopment work groups established by the town, resulting in a stack of paper files 4 inches high plus vast electronic files, which include final reports issued in 2005, 2008 and 2017.

These committees did really difficult work -- including public hearings and much professional input -- as they strove to craft compromises among diverse points of view and ultimately to define parameters within which the town could work with potential buyers. This approach seemed the best way to achieve a sale that will fulfill the majority of voters’ preferences.

The findings of the work groups definitely evolved over the years.

We started by removing undesirable uses that the site's River Business zoning allowed. The mandated incorporation of the Riverwalk, only a dream by some in 2005, was eventually included (it was not built until 2013), as were retaining the oak street trees and ultimately requiring space for the Farmers’ Market. Wishes were added: how about a bit more public space, and an event space?

Cranesport’s proposal checks all the boxes of the wishes outlined by the work groups (even that of 2005) including securing space for the Farmers’ Market.

In addition, the team provides a level of professionalism, passion, experience and openness to adapting to input that is beyond what anyone could have expected. I am confident that the ultimate design will incorporate our needs even better. We are lucky to have received this proposal. For taxpayers caring about the bottom line, the purchase price of a quarter million dollars is way beyond what any other option has been for this compromised site.

The ”No” folks want a final say on all the details of the final negotiation, and they want all their desires met. That is an unrealistic expectation for any buyer to undergo, and frankly invites another frustrated abandonment by a really good potential buyer. The “No” advocates in fact propose that the town retain ownership and maintenance.

While the tannery property would be a good place for another town park providing some additional recreational facilities that would be used, I believe that the town has other places where such recreational uses can be improved, while the Tannery property is uniquely suited and zoned for the mixed work and event community nexus Mullins envisions.

I suggest that the compromises achieved and the proposal that is so close to matching our wish list represent a win for all: our economy and our community. I am very excited that the affordable, flexible maker spaces will help grow and nurture our creative economy, filling an important yet empty niche in town.

The concept is an excellent fit for what our small, geographically-constrained town can provide in the economic sphere. It bodes well for encouraging the dynamic future of creative growth I envision for our town, something that pump tracks, playgrounds and pickle ball courts will not do. The beauty of this plan is that it incorporates community-centric active spaces as well as spaces for economic stimulus and growth.

You, Voters, will be deciding how our town will develop into the future: as a town offering more recreational assets for those like me who already live here and those who can afford to buy here; or, as a dynamic town with opportunities for the development and nurturing of fresh ideas and businesses in the creative economy. I choose the latter – but I’ll work with you to strive to provide the former - elsewhere. Join me to vote YES on #16.

Anita Brosius-Scott lives in Millville, Camden