I went to Clarke’s farm this weekend and took some photographs and said goodbye. I know that time marches on and you can’t stop progress, but I, for one, will miss the peace and beauty of the wide-open fields during all seasons. I have photographed sunsets, the old farm equipment laying dormant in the middle of the field and the brilliant colors on the trees in fall.

Other than feeling quite nostalgic about not seeing any of this beauty anymore, I am quite concerned about how 59 housing units and 12 apartments will affect traffic in Westbrook. How will an additional 200 cars affect the very frustrating bottleneck that stretches from the very short drive from Hannaford to Spring Street? Recently it took me 10 minutes to just get from Hannaford to the lights at William Clarke Drive and Spring Street. I sat through three lights there before I could turn right and then sat through five lights waiting to turn left onto Main Street. I sure hope this problem will be addressed.

Anyway, goodbye to the beauty of the wide open fields and the Clarke family farm that has been a part of Westbrook for over 100 years.

Ida Bilodeau

Westbrook