Public Hearing Thoughts & Comments

Last evening was the Public Hearing for the "adult bookstore" requested at the property owned by Mr. Birkenshaw at Bisco's truck stop. There were at least 40 people in attendance for the hearing. It should also be recognized that Tom Miller, the Planning Commission Chairperson, did an excellent job of running the meeting and keeping it controlled at all times.

The public hearing started with Mr. Birkenshaw's attorney giving all a civics lesson on the Pledge of Allegiance, the First Amendment of the Constitution and Mr. Birkenshaw's right to free speech by having his "adult bookstore" granted. (Technically, adult bookstores are in the category of sexually oriented businesses or S.O.B.'s. Don't you just love acronyms?) After hearing why the S.O.B. should be a permitted use by the attorney, one by one the citizens from Riley, Emmett and Memphis stood up and said why they believed it should not be allowed. Many also spoke to the fact that for years he (Bisco's) has not cleaned up his blight, have skirted ordinances on the edges rather than comply and some spoke to the character of the man who would want to bring the S.O.B. to our community. The comments ranged from the effect on families, their children and society in general, the harm these businesses can do to the surrounding area by their existence, statistics on the increase in crime and other undesirable outcomes and the freedom that citizens should have in determining what they want in their neighborhoods. On this issue, our community certainly extends beyond the boundaries of Riley Township.
More thoughts and opinions will follow soon.