To the editor:
The residents of Gloucester rejected plans for using the Birds Eye property to build a hotel and bring that area into the 21st century. The proposal to change the Marine Industrial Zone to accommodate other uses was also opposed, as it would weaken the working waterfront of this unique neighborhood.
Fishing, mixed residential and fishing-related businesses are what made this part of Gloucester valuable in the first place. What happened at the Fort in the past and what occurs in the future will determine the future of Gloucester as it always has.
Destroy and replace in order to improve seems to be a recurring theme. Remember Urban Renewal? The Birds Eye building and adjacent properties do not need to be destroyed, they need to be utilized! The building is structurally sound and can be renovated to provide additional facilities where people can work, shop, eat, visit, be entertained and enjoy the diversification the Fort has always provided.
Mac Bell and other business associates have the "finger on the pulse" for the public feeling to maintain the operational facilities of Birds Eye and provide new life and preserve the history and heritage of the Fort.
Please watch the Times for an important meeting regarding the Birds Eye property. Plan to be involved by attending the meeting or sending your thoughts and constructive ideas by phone, e-mail, online, postal service or direct communication — somehow get involved in this project.
It is when we, the ones concerned with Gloucester and its future, decide what must be done, and direct our mayor and representatives and the Planning Board of our decisions, that government works best.
We must act now to help Mr. Bell and his associates in this effort to save the Fort, and preserve this national treasure.
Roy Spittle
Harriet Road, Gloucester
