I would like to congratulate the future developer of the Payson property at 179 Foreside Road, Cumberland, for the victory on the Nov. 4 ballot. The citizens of Cumberland will now spend $4.8 million ($3 million plus interest) for 1 1/2 fragile miles of hiking trails, a price set by the appraiser working for the developer, but accepted by the Cumberland Town Council. A very clever deal. My math computes that this deal works out to be nearly $600 for each foot of the trail, even before the additional expenses of operating the land are computed. Very clever indeed.

Tom Quinby
Cumberland