Editor:

As I was reading the article about the zoning request being denied on the property south of the corner of Solomon Road and South Barney Lane, I was offended when I read this comment: “I really don’t want a bunch of trailer trash alongside of me,” said Mark Adamson, who owns an adobe house on about 15,000 square feet near the Clonts’ property.”

I live in a manufactured home on the High Mesa. I do not feel I or my neighbors qualify as trailer trash. We take care of our homes and take pride in them, and most of them are better built than many site-built homes. We also have age and square footage limits in our subdivision. Manufactured homes are just that, homes. They are not trailers. They are set on foundations, and most are permanently attached to the land. Many of the older homes in the area are not as nice as most newer manufactured homes are.

Mine had to withstand being hauled from the factory to where it now resides and had to be built to withstand movement of this sort, winds and moisture. If I ever had to move it, it would fare far better than any site-built home would if moved. I don’t understand why our homes should be referred to as “trash” when most are quite lovely and well built.

I am not opposed to a subdivision on that parcel if the lot sizes are relatively in line with current rules and regulations set forth by the county and state.

I would hope if this rezoning goes through that something would be done about the corner itself of Solomon and Barney Lane; it is an extremely dangerous intersection as it is now.

I would like to see this intersection somehow improved before more people move to the area. A wider intersection and clear vision in all directions would be a must if this road is to sustain more traffic than it already does. It is already quite busy since it is the only southerly route around Downtown Safford for people coming home from work at PD or for those from the east end of the Valley to get to Highway 191.

Just because we were here first doesn’t mean we should try to deny others from buying here. Keep growth in line with guidelines already set.

If you change rules for one, you will end up changing rules for others.

Let’s be careful and plan our growth with the thought in mind of keeping our Valley as lovely as we can while also providing nice homes for people to live in. Yes, we will lose some of our wide, open spaces and some of our views, but we can still be a place we can be proud to live in if we do it right.

Sylvia Forsgren

Safford