What is up with all the new houses being built in Westbrook?
Now, I will admit that my husband and I built a new home in Westbrook a couple of years ago, but I’m not being a hypocrite. The difference is that we built a house on a large lot of land that already had an old house my husband grew up in and had been in his family for 70-plus years.
My gripe with the new houses being built are the ones you see being built in someone’s back yard and all the developments. Every time you turn around there is a new development going in, with houses being built on top of each other!! I’m assuming that the city keeps approving these developments because they’re seeing dollar signs in their eyes and are only thinking of the revenue from the taxes.
But, who are the majority of people moving in to these developments? Families! So, when you factor in the costs for each child in our school system, the household trash collection and maintenance costs for the new streets in the developments, the
question becomes: “Are we really making any money from the taxes?”
I, for one, would rather preserve the small amount of trees and and that is left in Westbrook and stop all the building. Believe it or not, years ago when Wes McKague was the arborist for the city, it was accepted by the National Arbor Day Foundation into the Tree City USA program. Do we now want to be known as House City USA?
If we don’t start being careful and selective about what and how much is being built in this city, then we’re going to be nothing more than another Portland. I don’t know about you, but I want to live in Westbrook!
Lynda Adams
Westbrook
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