The comments I intended to enter into the record

People say to me, we can’t propose anything on Comeau, it will just open a
Can of worms – I looked the phrase up on the internet and on some sites it is attributed to a mid 20th century saying that likened a situation that had many challenging twists and turns to being like the tangled mess of worms one used to find in cans sold by fishing stores.


I’m here tonight to support the idea of looking at the terms of the draft Comeau easement with a fresh set of eyes, eyes that are focused on the infrastructure needs of our town well into the 21st century.

Thank you, Supervisor Jeff Moran for articulating in a recent news paper interview the concept many Woodstockers struggle with, how to protect the 77 acre Comeau property and at the same time utilize small portions of the land to satisfy the needs of the town government and recreational groups. I support his idea that the details of the draft easement need to be looked at with members of the WLC, from the perspective of how the towns infrastructure needs have evolved since 2003. Thank you to the members of the WLC who wish to “make sure that any eventual easement reflects the Town’s current and future activities, uses and conservation goals for the Comeau property




I hope that out of tonight’s meeting will emerge community leaders who aren’t afraid to open a can of worms.

We know that we must provide our police, court and justice employees with a safe secure place to work. We know that town offices at the Comeau need TLC – to bring them up to 21st century work standards.

For at least 20 years town leaders have been trying to resolve these problems.
It seems to me that we always come back to Comeau.

The Comeau property is a stunningly beautiful peace of property. I don’t know of anyone who is speaking about “developing” Comeau. If I let my mind wander a little throughout all the hamlets of Woodstock, there are hundreds and hundreds of acres of our 70 some square miles that are preserved from development because they are already held by the WLC, the DEP and other land preservation groups.

I am interested in supporting community leaders who can work with the Friends of Comeau who seem to always be in a state of hyper vigilance whenever the use of Comeau is mentioned and guide them to the discussion table with those of us who want sufficient amounts of land reserved for upgrading our Town offices.



There is another definition of the phrase can of worms. It is said that it might be a modern version the ancient term “ Pandoras Box” Of course we all know that once Pandoras box was opened, all kinds of terrible plaques were set upon the earth. What I had forgotten is that at the bottom of the box, was HOPE.

And I hope that both sides in this issue, how to use Comeau, can meet in the middle and
agree that it’s ok to consider and perhaps agree that a few more acres are needed to resolve our town infrastructure and space needs at long last.