To the Editor:

I am the senior surviving member of the Killingworth Venuti family, and one of the Trustees of the family property. I have entrusted the communications with Town officials to the other Trustee, my nephew Michael. He has done a superb job in every respect of dealing with the many representatives of all the boards and committees. It is my opinion that the elected and appointed representatives in Killingworth are simply incapable of making a decision on this issue, even the simple decision to bring this matter before the voters in a referendum. They have had all the facts long enough to have placed this issue on the November general election ballot. Instead, they pass the buck all around, and now decide to form another committee to duplicate all the work already done at least twice before.

Michael is still optimistic, but that is a folly of the young. I have seen enough of Killingworth administrations over many decades to realize that the old saying really applies: A committee is made up of people who individually can do nothing, but collectively can reach the conclusion that nothing can be done!

The people of Killingworth have got to get a dose of reality when it comes to the two distinct possibilities resulting from the Town purchasing this property, or the family developing it into mixed housing.

It has been responsibly calculated that if the Town purchases this property now at the negotiated price, it will cost an average of $250 per year per family for the next 20 years. For this, they will immediately have access to myriad facilities for swimming, fishing, hiking, boating, and many other recreational endeavors.

On the other hand, development of this property will result in up to 150 new houses possibly housing 300 or more new students. Just think of how many classrooms, teachers, buses and related expenses will result from an influx of that many students. One can only imagine what the additional cost per family will be ... $1000 per year? $2000 per year? More? And that doesn't end in 20 years; it goes on forever! And guess what? The Town will have to buy other properties to create more recreational facilities for the increased population.

I don't live in Killingworth, haven't for half a century. Frankly, I don't care which way this goes. Development will net the Venuti family considerably more money in the long run than having the Town purchase this property. Michael and his brothers do live there. They do care about the future of Killingworth. They know what is really best for the Town, but they cannot make anything happen by themselves. Their full cooperation with Town officials has netted nothing. It is up to the people of Killingworth to let their elected officials know what they want the future of Killingworth to be.

Joe Venuti
Nokomis FL