To The Editor:
“I'd made sure you'd played hooky and been a-swimming,” says Tom Sawyer’s aunt in the first chapter. Swimming, kids and high antics are the hallmarks of the American summer and the kids mentioned by our select board are not the first to discover these joys.
I was concerned to hear of some of the extreme ideas and anger our select board is resorting to in response to the bridge jumping. There are real safety concerns regarding traffic and the hole left in the interior. I hope we can address these without alienating kids and families.
A beautiful space has been created downtown and summer is off to a tremendous start. How lucky we are, here in The Valley, that when our kids want to hang out with each other their first instinct is to meet up at the river. They are outside with fresh air and exercise and in a very public place; they aren’t holed up in front of their computer, nor are they being sneaky and hiding out. Kids will always find places to congregate and should some of these severe ideas be put into practice, they will find another place far from the public eye which could prove far more dangerous.
This is the first summer that we have the downtown available in its current form with a lovely parklike feel and evening lighting. It should come as no surprise that kids see it for the asset that it is. Certainly, the business owners at Bridge Street should not be charged with monitoring behavior or cleanup and a positive solution for all should be our goal. For when these kids grow up to be business owners and select board members and look back on their Vermont summers, these bucolic Tom Sawyer days are sure to rate among their fondest memories.
Genevieve Knight
Waitsfield
