Close neighbors means more need for broad design approach

Frontiersman editorial board

Two people riding in an elevator will generally ride amicably together, or at least casually ignore one another. Even getting stuck in an elevator with one -- or even two -- other people isn't terrible, and may be better than getting stuck alone.

Toss five, seven or nine people together for a long elevator ride, however, and it's not long before little habits of your companions, which may have gone unnoticed in a less-crowded place, begin to chafe. Does one person really need all that applied aroma? Will he ever stop sniffling? Must she fidget?

Welcome to growth in the Mat-Su. Houses that used to face empty lots now view parcels bared for development. Where neighbors were hundreds of yards away, lawn mowers now fire up 50 feet away from bedroom windows on Saturday mornings. Private cookouts are publicized by cleared lots and newly planted lawns, and favorite fishing holes are sometimes lost as algae blooms take over once-pristine lakes.

The face of the Valley is changing, and some of the people who changed it first are watching the development with a wary eye, analyzing how the change will affect them. When it does, they look for solutions -- but many times those solutions simply haven't been developed. In the Mat-Su Borough, regulations requiring untouched green space around waterways aren't in place, there is little to encourage developers to set aside space for sidewalks in heavily developed subdivisions, and no provision exist requiring publicly owned parks to be interspersed within subdivisions. When choices for outdoor activity are for children to play in an increasingly busy street, stay within a small yard or drive in a vehicle to visit a trail system, development begins to feel as stifling as a crowded elevator.

The Mat-Su Borough has been working on a rewrite of Title 16, pertaining to subdivisions -- a job that's been years in the making and needed even longer. The effort has stalled numerous times along the way, but not for lack of need. Nearly everyone involved in the rewrite -- from developers and surveyors to homeowners -- agree new rules must be crafted to help shape future development, before we all feel claustrophobic from its effects.

We support the effort to reshape the outdated regulations, and encourage those involved to press on. We recognize that this elevator is far from reaching its capacity, and we hope regulations can be put in place that will help all its occupants fit comfortably together for the duration.