• I have never seen rural highway commercial development that did not impact on a nearby small town. We need not look beyond our own town at what happened when Food Lion opened. We now have two empty grocery stores right in Cape Charles. I have seen this happen in other small rural towns too. Big corporations do what they have to do to ensure success and monopoly.

I am delighted and encouraged by the great events Cape Charles has planned and hosted this year, and I am encouraged by the number of people who attended each. The town is looking great. Brave investors and determined shop owners deserve our support and gratitude. But this is the summer. Winter will come. Our businesses need to be able to depend on local clients to support and sustain themselves. They do not need to compete with local or national chains sitting on the highway just a mile away.

• Regarding the waste water treatment plant and its current under-use, once the marina and golf communities are built out, at what capacity will the plant be functioning? Is that reality so far in the future that it should not be considered when offering to support and serve other areas?

Finally, a comment: I understand why members of our town council and administration sit on broader authorities and boards that make decisions about issues related to Cape Charles, i.e. the Library Board and the PSA. Under such circumstances, however, it falls to Cape Charles representatives to be sure that they are seeking out support from and taking into account the expectations, needs, and opinions of the citizens of the town. As a property owner and part-time resident, it does not seem to me that that always is the case. Discussions and decisions seem to take place primarily at the board/council levels. Perhaps more forums & town meetings might help. Online publications like The WAVE and “Cape Charles Happenings” are helping non-resident property owners like me as well.