The Observer Newspapers | Vote Was About Pride in Town

August 15 , 2008

Vote Was About Pride in Town

To the editor:

The Herndon Planning Commissioners are puzzled by the conclusion Jasbinder Singh drew from the public hearing process about the Diamond hotel zoning map amendment proposal. Despite overwhelming public support, a wealth of planning commission work sessions, special meetings, and public hearings, and unanimous endorsement of the proposal by the commission, Mr. Singh has come to the curious conclusion that the planning commission's vote must have been politically motivated.

We're not going to dignify Mr. Singh's conclusion, except to acknowledge that once he's drawn it, he is no longer obligated to address any issues of substance or recite facts to support them.

Indeed, in the absence of any substantive argument, Mr. Singh has resorted to unsupported assertions and innuendo—everything from "many zoning and planning issues remain largely un-discussed and unresolved" to the planning processes "limit public debate." We, who are most familiar with the application and its many issues, are aware of one or two minor unresolved issues, both of which were acknowledged during final public hearing. Moreover, the Diamond Hotel proposal has been debated in this community since last November when the first elevations were unveiled on the front page of The Herndon Observer. We can recall few issues which have generated as much public debate in the past several years. Where were you, Mr. Singh, while the rest of the community was discussing the merits of this proposal?

Mr. Singh is, however, deadly accurate about one thing: the Diamond hotel proposal is the first in what we hope will be many to finally revitalize Herndon's downtown—an objective all of us on the commission have been anticipating for decades. Had Mr. Singh been paying attention, he'd know that the 2030 comprehensive plan includes a citizen planning component for future downtown development. Had Mr. Singh been a participant, he'd know that this is a proud community that works together to realize its goals. We may not always agree on every issue, but after the decisions are made—and the Town Council's decision about the Diamond Hotel proposal hasn't yet been rendered—we work together to make the outcome the best possible outcome for Herndon. This isn't about politics, Mr. Singh. This is about our community and the pride we all have in it.

Instead of standing on the outside of the process and pointing fingers after the fact, we invite Mr. Singh to join us in our deliberations on the many, many significant planning issues we face in the coming months and years, not least of which will be the next steps to rebuild our downtown.

Carl Sivertsen, Chairman

And All Members of the Board

Herndon Planning Commission