The first thing to keep in mind about the now very hot issue of a proposed greenway along northern stretches of Bolin Creek is that we are several years away from seeing funding and approval for anything.
The second thing is that good people on both sides have strongly held views and detailed reasons to support their positions on what should be done along various stretches of the waterway.
The third is that most of the rest of us haven’t the foggiest idea of what all the fuss is about.
There has not been a greenway built in southern Orange County that’s been met with open arms by its neighbors. Most of the time, the expressed worry has been that it is a conduit for criminals — an argument that we have thankfully moved beyond for the most part.
The fight over the proposed extension of Bolin Creek Greenway has been mainly environmental — over the type of surface along a critical section, whether that should be paved and how much damage that might do to the creek.
Of late that fight has turned ugly. In letters and essays, the heat has turned up and positions have hardened.
One unfortunate citizen who tried to advocate that both sides compromise in a way that allowed for access for people with disabilities was rudely treated when an errant headline in another paper put her in the pave-it camp. Had her detractors read what she had to say, they might have learned something.
In the latest development, Dave Otto, who has been a champion of the creek for many years, resigned from Friends of Bolin Creek, an organization he helped found, over disagreements about the greenway and the fallout of a sharply worded essay published in this newspaper.
Tempers remain hot, but there are at least attempts to cool them down.
We’d like to suggest a time out at the very least — call it a moratorium on arguing while we enjoy the spring. The beauty of the little patch of woods in question is, after all, a big part of what’s driving this issue.
Going forward, it’s probably time for a series of conversations within the community about greenways and their future. Chapel Hill and Carrboro refresh at a rather rapid rate, and every now and then it’s a good idea to reiterate why we do the things we do.
A little history of the reasons we are building greenways and past experiences is probably in order.
In particular, Carrboro, which only recently put together a separate advisory board on greenways, needs to gather views from citizens in all parts of town, not just those directly affected by individual projects and certainly not just when the heat is on.