"A Moscow not divided"

I loved Nils Peterson's preening, self-important little "victory speech" in today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Do you think he would have been so gracious if No SuperWalMart had lost? I doubt it. They would be vowing to fight to the death like PARD.

In my opinion, a bitter chapter in Moscow's history is just opening. Note the swipe he takes at Pullman pursuing "mass merchandising." What we are pursuing is "mass profit," not apartments inside grain elevators and hemp shops. We'll see who's better off in five years. I wonder if Peterson will be so cocky then.

Whaddya say Moscow developers? Want to sit down for a cup of coffee with an academic and let him "bless" your multi-million dollar project? Talk about chutzpah.

A bitter chapter in Moscow history has closed. Friday night I had a chance to say thank you to a broad segment of the community who came up to the 1912 Center after celebrating a vibrant downtown ArtWalk.

I don’t think that our community is permanently divided. Even during the process, I was talking with Shelley Bennett, and it was she who alerted me to a developer with plans to do mixed use development between downtown and the university. She was excited, and thought the city would be excited, to see proposals that aligned with NewCities and helped the city grow inward – the New Urbanism.

So I was pleased to go to the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting Wednesday evening, to talk with Rick Beebe and to stand with him saying: “Yes, Moscow.” I was disappointed at the turn of events.

Murf Raquet’s editorial (Opinion, June 16) about downtown parking was well taken. Parking is a concern, but it can be studied, mitigated, and should not be a tool used against Moscow achieving its future. Enriching a vital and interesting downtown is Moscow’s best answer to counter Pullman’s move to add mass merchandising.

In the spirit of avoiding another conflict, I’d be honored to buy a cup of coffee for any developer or Realtor who wanted to sit and brainstorm how they might develop a public process away from the P&Z chambers to gather input and support for their next project.

Nils Peterson, Moscow