Willow to begin planning process

Frontiersman correspondent

WILLOW - Nearly 350 people filled the Willow Community Center on Monday night in what may have been the largest group to attend a Willow Area Community Organization (WACO) meeting in the 50-year history of the organization.

The issue being voted on at the meeting was one many Willow residents consider taboo: comprehensive planning. The razor-thin margin of approval, 146-142, reflected the contentiousness of the issue.

According to WACO secretary Pat Madigan, the organization will request assistance from the borough as it moves forward.

&#8220But we want to proceed slowly. What will happen next is that people from the community have to volunteer to be on the planning team,” Madigan said. &#8220And the goal is to build as varied a team as possible.”

At last month's WACO meeting, Mary Shreves made a motion that WACO write a letter to the Mat-Su Borough Planning Department, asking them to help the community begin the process of developing a comprehensive plan for the Willow area.

A vote on that motion, along with a proposed amendment stating that &#8220any changes made by the planning commission or assembly must be approved by the Willow community” was postponed until Monday's meeting, in order to give the community an opportunity to make public comments and vote.

To open discussion, Murph O'Brien, the borough's planning and land use director, gave a brief overview of how the planning process works and what the community could expect if the plan moves forward. Then he took questions from the floor, including how the planning team would be selected, how much the plan would cost taxpayers, and how it would be enforced.

&#8220This process allows the community to outline their vision,” O'Brien told the group. &#8220It gives a community a sense of where they came from and where they want to go.”

Many who offered public comment expressed concerns over the borough being involved in the WACO effort. Before leaving, O'Brien reminded the group that the borough is their local government. &#8220If you want to move forward with this, we'll help,” O'Brien told the crowd. &#8220And if you aren't ready, we'll wait.”

During the comment period, dozens of people weighed in on the issue, each being allowed three minutes to voice their views. Many were passionate in their comments, including Andy Kopczenski.

&#8220They think we are a bunch of hillbillies,” Kopczenski told the crowd. &#8220They say (growth) is coming and you can't stop it.” He raised his fist into the air. &#8220But we can stop it, right here, tonight.”

Anchorage resident and Willow property owner Robert Gottstein wanted to know who was eligible to vote on the motion. According to the WACO bylaws, a member is anyone who owns property in Willow or who is a resident of the community, and any member of WACO can cast a vote.

John Wood, who has lived in Willow since 2001, sat on the Anchorage Assembly for nearly 10 years. He told the group he is opposed to a comprehensive plan.

Wood made a motion during the meeting that the plan be presented to the community and then voted on during a borough election. But he withdrew the motion when WACO parliamentarians said it was not a proper motion, since it would exclude those WACO members who lived and voted in other areas, but owned property in Willow.

&#8220What I see happening here is that you have a group of people who earnestly believe this is the right way to go,” Wood said. &#8220But no one will win in the end if you continue to go this way.”

Madigan compared Monday night's meeting attendance with the 461 people who voted in borough elections held in the same building the next day.

&#8220This is obviously a very big issue,” she said.

Madigan attributed the high turnout to the efforts of Willow 2020, a group of local citizens who have spent the last year educating and informing the community about the need for planning.

&#8220Willow 2020, and especially the efforts of Erv Dedeker, is the reason this happened,” she said. &#8220Even when most of the group wanted to give up, Erv didn't. He really was the driving force.”

Dedeker, who chairs the Willow 2020 group, seemed pleased - and a little surprised - to see so many people at the meeting.

&#8220It's great to see a big turnout,” Dedeker said before the meeting. &#8220It doesn't matter how the vote goes - what matters is that people are talking about planning, learning about it.”

Jodi Snyder is the Frontiersman's Willow-area correspondent.