To the editor:

My heart bleeds for the homebuilders in Lawrence who feel so put-upon because they may be asked to foot more of the bill for the homes they build and sell. The cost of new housing is much more than just that of a physical structure. It requires such additions as utility hook-ups, sidewalks, streets, street signs and street lights, and also impacts schools and police and fire protection. And as a long-standing component of the Lawrence community, public parks have been a special feature of the city that contribute to its attractiveness and appeal as a place to live and raise a family.

All of these add-ons are legitimate parts of the cost of new housing, and properly they should be paid for by the builder, and ultimately by the home buyer, not by the community at large. Indeed, when my family moved to Lawrence in 1966, we assumed for many years an annual assessment added to our property tax bill to cover the cost of the city-built sidewalk on our property.

Charles Wyttenbach,

Lawrence