To the editor:

George Gurley (Journal-World, April 8) correctly calls for developers and neighborhoods to cooperate, but his view of the planning process is incorrect.

Horizon 2020 is the community’s expression of what it wants. If a developer proposes to build more retail space than the plan calls for, the answer should be a firm “No.” Calling this response a “lengthy delay” is unfair to the community.

Gurley disparages efforts to control the growth of retail spaces saying that “overbuilding is usually self-correcting.” The facts show this to be untrue. If the process was self-correcting, there would be no long-term trends of excessive development or high vacancies, but Lawrence has witnessed both. From 1995 through 2005, the retail space in Lawrence grew at a rate more than three times the rate of growth in demand for that space. The result is a 10 percent vacancy rate and the conversion of retail space to other uses, spreading the harm of overbuilding beyond the retail sector.

The community is paying the price for this overbuilding. It is blighting neighborhoods and wasting investments in downtown redevelopment. Planning for the growth of retail space is hardly “farfetched,” as Gurley states. Rather, it is a good way for the residents of Lawrence to protect themselves. The city must bring discipline to the development process and ensure that the pace of growth of space does not exceed the pace of growth of demand for that space.

Kirk McClure,

Lawrence