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Residents urge board to uphold moratorium; supporters defend developer
Summary
During public comment residents bordering the Dinks and Links site urged the board to deny a hardship waiver citing lack of financial evidence and concerns for nearby senior affordable housing; other residents and a neighbor urged the board to grant relief and noted prolonged permitting delays.
Several residents addressed the board during the public‑comment portion of the Aug. 6 meeting about the Dinks and Links project and other local issues.
Sean Whipple, who said he owns property at 898 Ridge Road in Sunset Valley, argued the developer had not demonstrated a financial hardship: the developer does not own the land, has only a purchase contract, and may be able to obtain contractual or bank extensions. “If you give them a hardship exemption, you're setting a bad precedent moving forward and other developers will come in here and look for, an exemption as well,” Whipple said.
Christine Whipple, who said she represents about 70 residents of an adjacent affordable senior community, urged denial of the waiver because the applicant had not provided the clear‑and‑convincing evidence (including financial documentation) the moratorium requires. She pointed to unfinished site‑plan work — for example, trees not being tagged — as evidence the project had not met conditions before seeking relief.
By contrast, Ron Nesbitt and another neighbor told the board the project had been before the planning board for years and that the project should not be ‘punished’ by the moratorium. Nesbitt also raised other town concerns, including overgrown roadside vegetation and what he described as limited speeding enforcement; he said, “We're paying the police department 9,500,000 a year, and they wrote 64 tickets, speeding tickets, in 2024.”
The record shows residents on both sides of the waiver question; the board's later denial turned on evidentiary standards spelled out in the moratorium code rather than on neighborhood sentiment alone.
