A Sad and Troubling Development

By Lloyd T. Shanley, Jr., Harwinton

This letter is not written in opposition to creating the additional classroom space and facilities needed for the Harwinton-Burlington students of Region #10, nor to criticize the work of the School Board and its study committee. It is written only to question the wisdom of sacrificing Northwestern Connecticut's nearly lone airport in the process.

Forty years ago the Selectmen of Harwinton and Burlington were united in the belief that Johnny Cake Airport and its environs were a unique asset that should be protected and preserved by the two municipalities. State and federal funding that could have been used for acquisition and modernization of the airport were then available.

Unfortunately the town residents were led by some to believe that large commercial jets would soon be making use of the landing strip if the facility were to be owned and administrated by a local authority. The voters attending a Harwinton Town Meeting in the early 1960s refused to even hear the report of the airport study committee that had been appointed months earlier. Those in attendance soundly defeated the cooperative effort.

Though it is now "water over the dam," I must admit that the thought of the irreplaceable airport and eighty acres along the Harwinton-Burlington town line being sacrificed to development—be it school, factory, or housing—is indeed sad and troubling!