RE: Dismayed by condition of old neighborhood by Ed Vignaroli (Voice of the people, April 10)
Mr. Vignaroli, I am so glad you were able to visit our wonderful town recently. However, after reading your comments on Hunnington Place neighborhood, I was shocked and heartbroken.
As a resident of Hunnington, I take great offense to your comments, especially knowing the work and money that has gone into our neighborhood. You drove through our lovely little neighborhood for one minute and then proceeded to write a disparaging letter to our editor. One major point you should remember is that 16 years ago, Hunnington Place was brand new. It is unrealistic to assume the neighborhood will look the exact same.
I’m not sure what you define as basic upkeep but the majority of our neighbors have beautiful lawns and nice houses. We work hard to keep our houses looking their best, weather permitting of course! As far as upkeep, in the past three years, I have witnessed five out of seven of the houses on our street freshly painted.
You wrote, “I understand hard economic times limit what one can and can’t do in the area of remodeling ones home.” Mr. Vignaroli, you simply drove through. In no way can you determine what we have and have not done as far as remodeling. In the past three years, my husband and I have spent $30,000 on updating. I have also witnessed many of my neighbors doing the same. Your quick judgment makes me question your intent.
There is one thing that I know you can’t conclude with your drive-thru. Hunnington has the best neighbors anyone could ask for. You obviously missed all of us laughing and talking in our lawns. You missed seeing our children running and playing safely on our cul-de-sacs. You missed our compassion and unity during an illness, death, or storm. You can judge the outside of our beautiful houses when you drive through our neighborhood, but Mr. Vignaroli, we are much more than that.
You see, we are proud of our lovely little neighborhood, proud of each other, and we are proud of Columbus. We would never do anything to bring disgrace to a town we call home. I’m so sorry you no longer feel the need to return to Columbus, but that’s okay. After all, we are known as “The Friendly City” for a reason.
Tracy Broocks
Columbus
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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