Frederick County Commissioner Blaine R. Young's op-ed piece in The Sun ("Smart Growth politics," Sept. 20) causes me to write. Mr. Young might be right that Gov. Martin O'Malley's "PlanMaryland' is objectionable. Many might say Mr. Young is wrong. The silly part of Mr. Young's opinion piece is his musing that the governor has proposed this plan to boost the control of this state by "liberal Democrat jurisdictions in the metropolitan areas."
Mr. Young doesn't disagree that this plan might increase the population of the metropolitan areas. After all, that is the idea of Smart Growth to guide development to where the infrastructure is already in place instead of gobbling up more open space and increasing sprawl. But to suggest that the plan's purpose is political is a wee bit silly.
Mr. Young assumes that newcomers attracted to the metropolitan areas will automatically vote in line with their liberal Democratic neighbors. That is just plain illogical. Or might Mr. Young's motivation for opposition be politically driven?
Mel Mintz, Pikesville