Much like a young child, Dewey-Humboldt is taking its first few steps.  A little wobbly at first but with a new found sense of self determination, we venture forward into the future.

  However, it has become clear to me and many other residents that in spite of its efforts, our local government has failed to see the large and long term picture for Dewey-Humboldt.  Admittedly, predicting the future is a touchy art but it is becoming obvious that there is little of that effort on the part of our local leaders.  Naturally somebody will claim that acts like the approval of the Monogram development at Young's Farm is a move toward the future but it's not.  It is a mere reaction to the pitch of a developer, one with lots of money at stake.  If one dares to look a few indicators, it becomes evident that a housing development at the Young's Farm location is short-sighted and possibly counter-productive, and at the very least deserves much more time and community feedback than has been considered.

  Think about this:  It may well be that the best investment that our town could make for its future would be, ironically, the preservation if its farm land.  Most of us know how nice it is to have fresh farm produce available in the "farmer's market" atmosphere at Young's Farm.  It's right here in town, of better quality than you find in a grocery store and it's cheaper.  For some of us, that may seem a mere convenience but those of us who are on limited or fixed incomes greatly value the asset that a local farm is.

  Not convinced?  Let's throw something else into the mix.  In the last two years we have been shocked by the high price of gasoline.  Whereas some of us hope that we will see breaks, it is now well accepted that we will no longer see gas prices significantly below the $3.00 per gallon mark.  This is mostly due to the the fact that our refining capacity in this country has been reached even as demand continues to increase.  That in and of itself dictates that with no new refineries being built, we will see a steady ramping up of fuel prices.  Let's forget for the moment that world supplies will very soon be strained by the Chinese demand which is already growing several times faster than it ever has in this country.  That aside, we can still see that very soon it will become increasingly more expensive to do things like commute and transport products to stores.  That, plus our rising inflation rates will soon take a toll on retail prices.

  In Dewey-Humboldt, the number of people who would be affected by high fuel prices is quite significant.  From those with a limited budget for food to those who commute to Prescott or even Phoenix, this adversity will be widely felt and could severely affect the expected influx of new residents, jeopardizing the newer commercial developments that are appearing as we speak.  Furthermore, higher retail prices and expensive transit will play against new businesses who would otherwise look toward Dewey-Humboldt.  Yet in this challenging scenario, it would be local farms that not only prosper, but also provide much needed relief for the residents of this town.  Indeed, in years past when transit was not cheap, farms have always been a staple of rural communities.

  I do not mean to cast a dark cloud over this town, for all conditions are temporary.  Yet, as inflation now takes a deep breath, the time could not be more perfect for greater planning than we have seen thus far by our local leaders.  Perhaps they are doing the best that they know how, it's just that they have not formulated a well thought out long range plan to work from so they are left with short term decisions which, unfortunately, will have long range consequences that have not yet been considered.  Imagine how bad it would be to build up lots of expensive infrastructure only to face a stalled economy for several years.

  I submit to you that the very best course of action for our town council is to change as little as is humanly possible until a well considered long range community plan is put into effect.  Developers will always be handy should we wish to grow the town.  There is no need to rush.  As to Young's Farm?  I believe that within five years we will come to realize the true value of the wonderful landmark, fixture and life blood that it has been and could continue to be.  I only hope that there is a way to preserve what it is regardless of who owns and operates it.  I realize that this may take some creative thinking and action, the kind of creative thinking and action that, if accomplished by a town government, would earn the eternal respect of its citizens.




[Return]