MCGP Statement Regarding Stony Springs
June 29, 2001

We, the members of the Monroe County Green Party, are deeply
disappointed by the actions of our local government in allowing the
Canterbury development at Stony Springs on Bloomington's west side to
move forward.  The County Council voted in favor of subsidizing this
development at taxpayer expense despite the opposition of the
overwhelming majority of citizens who attended relevant public
meetings, and despite the Bloomington Environmental Commission's
finding that the site is unsuitable for such development.

We base our condemnation of the Council's vote on two of our key
values, ecological wisdom and social justice, which are both violated
by the government subsidy for Canterbury. As stated eloquently by a
wide range of concerned citizens, the development is to take place in
an area which geologically cannot support such dense structures and
which is among the last of our precious urban greenspaces.
Furthermore, although it meets the rather arbitrary state
qualifications for "affordable housing", the development does not
provide the truly affordable housing our community needs.  Thousands
of Bloomington residents who are employed full-time could not afford
the proposed lease rates.  These valid concerns were casually
dismissed by the five County Council members who voted in favor of
subsidizing the project.  Once again, the interests and concerns of
the people whom government officials were elected to represent have
been ignored in favor of corporate interests feeding at the public
trough.

We see the public attention focused on the Canterbury controversy as
an opportunity to emphasize the importance of public involvement in
local government.  In order to prevent future developments such as
Canterbury from receiving government support or even government
approval in the future, we must all pay close attention to the city's
and county's policies and practices with regard to environmental
protection and development subsidies.  We must make every effort to
attend public meetings from the beginning so that our concerns can be
heard before a developer obtains any level of approval.

During the coming months, citizens of Bloomington will have the
opportunity to give input into the city's new Growth Policies Plan and
its implementation through a new zoning ordinance.  We urge all
citizens to make their voice heard during this important process to
preserve what remains of our urban greenspace and to lay the
groundwork for government support of truly affordable, low-income
housing in the future.  The Monroe County Green Party will be there at
every step.