To the Editor:

The master plan, according to Massachusetts General Law has nine required elements: statement of goals and policy, land use, Housing, economic development, natural and cultural resources, open space and recreation, services and facilities, circulation and implementation. It’s hard enough to communicate, analyze, define, project and organize each area in a clear and thorough community-based plan of delivery, and then construct a cohesive whole where the cascades of interactions between areas are understood and consistently met, Then IMPLEMENT.

So it's easy to see why Marion's master plan can become the proverbial kicked can whose lack of formation leads to an absence of concrete bylaws to guide response to, for example, a corporate giant like CVS who wants its foot in our gateway. (A “No” response is not the definition of “Yes.”) And it’s easy to see how the lack of a master plan influences Finance Committee Chair Alan Minard's concerns when he speaks of the tax burden borne primarily by homeowners in a time of expensive and relentless infrastructure demands.

The master plan, in order to be an inclusive document, a legal framework, a guide for changing times, demands leadership from a highly qualified and dedicated board of elected members. This particular Planning Board at this particular time requires the election of two people with an analytic skill set who can hold their values and vision while listening, educating and eliciting others' visions. An elected member must have the temperament and intellect for synthesizing what is broad and multifaceted with critical detail, presenting model options and organizing discussion to invigorate goals for desired community outcomes. A member must see where legal conflicts might arise from a lack of clarity and shape and re-shape a holistic vision based on broad participation. It is our good fortune we voters have a choice.

As the League of Women Voters reminds us, democracy is not a spectator sport. Nor is being on the Planning Board. Nor is assuring a worthy master plan to define and protect Marion's development and future by showing up to vote without knowing candidates' principles (on Sippican Week online) and considering well what this task requires.

Respectfully,

Annie Hayes