Proposed subdivision concerns neighbors in historic area

A proposed subdivision on the northwest side of town has concerned some area residents.\nThey object to developer Dick Meacham's proposal to build a 107-lot subdivision on 122 acres west of North Maple Grove Road. The subdivision would lie on the Maple Grove Rural Historic District, an area of 19th century farmsteads among the county's earliest settlement areas.\nIt was designated a federal historical district in 1998, after more than a decade of lobbying by local residents.\n"It's unique in all of Monroe County," said Dave Rust, a 13-year resident. "It's the least altered countyside in the state since 1800."\nThe Monroe County Commissioners -- the final step to enacting the project -- have put off a formal hearing on the matter until Feb. 9. \nGreg Zody, interim assistant director of the Monroe County Planning Department, said it was delayed because of a letter petitioning further review of the proposal. The planning department approved the proposal in December, sending its recommendation to the commissioners.\nResidents said they oppose the subdivision because they believe traffic will double and wildlife habitats will be destroyed.\n"(The developers) are moving a city out into the country," said Joe Peden, whose family has lived on North Maple Grove Road since 1941. "If (a subdivision) were a good thing, the farm would have been developed years ago."\nPeden said he is in favor of larger lots with fewer houses so the area can maintain its rural atmosphere.\n"Everybody wants to live in the country," he said. "And, once they get there, they don't want anyone else to come out."\nMeacham said his proposal would maintain the quaint atmosphere of the area, noting that it calls for trees to buffer the entire subdivision from view. He said he also intends to build a replica of an old farmstead on the site.\nRust, along with other residents, attended meetings with Meacham and said he was surprised the subdivision was going to be so dense. Rust said it was difficult to convince Meacham to reduce the number of lots, a compromise which Meacham described as "unreasonable."\nMeacham originally planned to have 110 lots on the site, ranging from one-third of an acre to several acres, with the most dense lots on the interior of the subdivision. The space, Zody said, will serve instead as the buffer area, where coniferous and deciduous trees will be planted.\nRust doesn't deny that Meacham would preserve many of the natural features of the area, including stone walls, houses and cemeteries dating back to the 19th century.\n"My main concern is that we want good neighbors," he said.\nWhile Rust said he understands the land would eventually be used for homes, he hopes the county will scrutinize this subdivision because it is the first to be built in the historic district. \n"Then it will be apparent whether or not a subdivision is compatible with the area," he said.\nBut not everyone in the area is so concerned. \n"It doesn't bother me if they put (the subdivision) in," said Greg Bartlett, who lives on the far end of the street. "People have to have a place to live.\n"Still, I don't want to fight the traffic. And I would hate to see them tear down the trees"