I hope Greene Township is ready for the impact that the newly proposed ethanol plant will produce. What a mess it will be. Traffic on U.S. 11 and Pa. 997 is already a driver's nightmare.

What will the pollution do to this valley?

As a spouse of a federal retiree, we chose to move to this area two years ago. If we had known that an ethanol plant would be dumped in our backyard, we would have never moved here. I have met several federal retirees from Washington, D.C. and Maryland who have retired in Franklin County. We bring good secured retirements that provide a permanent income base for the local economy.

I feel Greene Township has just shot itself in the foot. No one will want to invest or relocate to an area with an ethanol industry. For most of us, the homes we own are our biggest investment. What will they be worth now?

We were told the recent variance meeting at Greene Township was to be a "public" meeting. At the beginning of the meeting it was said there would be discussions on the height limits of the Penn-Mar structures, and questions. When one citizen wanted to propose a question they were denied. The zoning committee quickly passed the Penn-Mar requests and adjourned the meeting.

I believe this ethanol plant was a done deal before it was ever made public.

Laura Stacy-Kurtz

Chambersburg

Originally published June 8, 2005