Mayfield? Here's my thought.

Mayfield? Good for Mountain Home or not? Well, I am certainly okay with progress and developing a new community can't be a bad thing, right? I have been thinking about this for awhile. My first reaction was indifferent as it has been for many. Most of us living here haven't gave it too much thought.

However, I have a few thoughts that have come to mind concerning this development. Since it is located on the border of Elmore and closer to Boise than Mtn Home, it is more beneficial for Ada county than Elmore. The people living there will not be traveling to our fair city for their grocery, household or recreational needs. They will not bring more money to our stores, banks or anything. They will go to Boise. That is obvious and not an agrument. Those who are in favor of this community are from Ada county.

So with that in mind, I wondered who else would like this community. The answer is some of the military personnel. There are military who live in Boise and drive to the base everyday. Now there will be a community where they can live close to both. They will drive to Simco road and cut through there, by-passing our city completely. So once again, the people who would want Mayfield and live there will not help Mtn Home's economy. Our little town will be by-passed completely.

So here is where I sit on this matter. Mtn Home is filled with empty houses, overgrown with weeds. And these houses will continue to sit empty as long as Mtn Home is overlooked. With the right program in place, Mtn Home could become a gem of the desert. With the right marketing skill, our town could be advertized as a wonderful small town community for people to escape city life. Many people would give us a thought if they knew that they could buy a nice home for less, pay less taxes and enjoy a more peaceful weekend. Many are looking for a way to leave the noise of the city and crowded neighborhoods. And if they knew that the commute is sometimes quicker from Mtn Home than those who live in the cities just north of Boise, it would give them pause. We have so much to offer to so many people. We need to concentrate on promoting what we have here instead of promoting the building of a new community that will have nothing to do with us in the future. Instead, bring people here to live. Enrich our community, fill up the empty houses and get those people into our businesses. It doesn't make sense to approve more houses to be built in Elmore when we have plenty lying in wait of an owner. It doesn't make sense to give Mayfield what our city needs to grow. Who truly benefits from it? Why not promote us? Our city needs those people to move here not there.