A familiar refrain

EDITOR:

The ongoing discussion regarding Walmart is oh, so familiar. I will not enter my personal feelings into the fray, but I would like to give a history lesson only going back the last 50 years. There are a lot of local residents who could go back much further.

Remember when there was such places as Carson Valley Mercantile, Minden Mercantile and Miller's Market? All of a sudden we had Eagle Thrifty (now Raley's) decide to locate a store on what was then the Lampe Ranch. Oh, what an uproar there was. But the people came. Remember when we had locally owned service stations throughout the county? All of a sudden large corporations like AM/PM, 7-Eleven and Western Mountain came in and we lost personal service like Reed's Richfield, Mort's 76 and Virgil Condron's Shell Station. Oh, what an uproar there was. But the people came. Remember when a man named Clapham decided to subdivide Banana Flats (Johnson Lane)? Oh, what a ridiculous idea that was. But the people came. Remember when we had cattle ranches and sheep ranches and they began to slowly fade away into housing areas? Oh, what an uproar there was. But the people came.

I could go on and on, but the point is, when you find what you think is utopia, as in the "Field of Dreams," remember "Build it and they will come."

I am not taking a side as to right or wrong, but simply trying to point out that over the last 50 years change has been constant and probably will be for the next 50 years. The view that you have come to feel is yours, and yours alone, will probably be blocked by some obstruction. The freedom to wander the river will probably be blocked by no trespassing signs, the hunting and fishing you enjoy will be a thing of the past, but let's all join in and try to make this a community we can all be proud of.

Just for the record, some of the letters to the editor indicate a dissatisfaction with the actions of the city government. Let it be known that Gardnerville and Minden are not cities. They are unincorporated town boards which are advisory to the county government. Maybe it is time they do explore the feasibility of incorporation so they can, in fact, respond to the desires of their citizens.

That is something you as voters would have to determine. But all of us, as citizens, must become proactive not just reactive with our government. Think about it.

Randy Slater

Gardnerville