In a "Her View" column on July 12, Tina Hilding called for more public hearings regarding New Saint Andrews College's expansion on north Main Street. However, to make each appeal an additional public hearing would make for an impossible process; it would go on and on.
In fact, the public hearing for New Saint Andrews already happened. It was held back in April. Folks came and expressed their views, pro and con, and NSA was granted a conditional use permit.
Ms. Hilding said she worries this decision may hurt downtown business, yet business owners in downtown Moscow have repeatedly expressed their support of the CUP. How could attracting an additional 200 creative, educated, respectful young people (who perform Bach cantatas on weekends) to downtown be anything but good for both the economic and artistic climate of our town? Students, their families, and community concertgoers will patronize downtown businesses and help revitalize the north end of Main Street. Many of NSA's students will settle down here and start families and contribute to our economy and the arts. NSA students and grads already own or manage or work for many downtown businesses and produce all sorts of creative work - as musicians, writers, painters, photographers, restaurateurs and so on.
So if you are pro-business and love the arts, you should support the idea of turning a rundown nightclub into a refurbished - to the tune of an estimated $4 million - bustling concert hall and college.
Jayson Grieser
Moscow
