The following is a response to the Nov. 7 editorial, "Catchall ballot referendums do a disservice to voters."
The members of the Rosa Bonheur Society Inc. [RBS] appreciate the support of Citizens Working to Fix Howard County [FIXHOCO] and the inclusion of the Rosa Bonheur Memorial Park on their group's referendum petition.
RBS members support FIXHOCO referendum petitioning and work as citizens need to provide input about the events occurring in their communities, so that politicians and government agencies can identify and respond to their needs in the most beneficial and effective ways.
The items included on the referendum petition were carefully selected through feedback received by FIXHOCO from concerned individuals and community groups based in Howard County. A "catchall" approach would have entailed challenging the entire comprehensive zoning bill, rather than FIXHOCO's researched, reasoned approach of judicious issue selection.
The issues selected for inclusion on the referendum petition are those that have the potential to directly and negatively impact the quality of life of Howard County citizens through ecological, environmental and socio-cultural systems; specifically, the potentially negative effects of high density development on food and water resources, population and neighborhood density, existing transportation and highway systems, historic sites, and/or the desecration of a cemetery and the violation of people's cultural, social and religious beliefs.
If the referendum petition sponsored by FIXHOCO garners enough signatures it is Howard County voters that have decided whether citizens should be able to vote about these issues. Then it will also be the voters who will decide whether to vote in favor of or against the amendment, if it is on the ballot in November 2014.
For the time being, events are unfolding, so we will all have to wait to see what develops and what the outcome of the referendum petitioning will be.
Candy Warden, President
Rosa Bonheur Society Inc.