Following up on our entry yesterday (scroll down three entries) reporting on two stories out of Porter County, requiring developers to set aside greenspace on their projects, is this editorial today in the Munster Times, headlined "Leave some land open before it's too late." More:
Some area builders are unhappy with a proposed Porter County zoning change to be discussed tonight. That change would require them to leave 20 percent of a new subdivision undeveloped.Posted by Marcia Oddi at June 9, 2004 09:25 AMWithout that green space, though, the way of life that draws people to the county, with its open spaces, is threatened.
County Commissioner Robert Harper, who sits on the county Plan Commission, proposed the change. He and some other Plan Commission members are tired of developers cramming homes into a subdivision without leaving some breathing room. * * *
Builders say this threatens the future of affordable housing. With less land to develop, the price of the remaining lots will increase, they say.
But how valuable will that land be once the county's natural attractions are gone?