Swimming is great for young and old

To the editor,

Congratulations to our Scarborough state championship swim team and their coach Eric French.

Scarborough is fortunate to have a full slate of athletic opportunities for all interested students to participate in as they progress through their educational experience. These activities are supported by the taxpayer, parents with contributions from interested people, not to mention from the athletes fund raising themselves.

Now, back to swimming. Scarborough has state of the art facilities for football,basketball,baseball, softball, track, and field, volleyball, etc. Most of the student athletes who participate in these activities will not play a single inning, play, or down after graduation. None of these activities are easily carried on into full adulthood.

Swimming, however, is. Swimming is considered a perfect physical activity for all ages.

I am an 80-year-old man who has invested a lot of my available free time to physical activity. Over time, my body has told me to “stop the pounding activity” and enjoy a workout without impact. That has led me to the pool. I don’t swim, I exercise. It’s a great workout and doesn’t aggravate age-related issues and injuries.

I have been paying to use a community pool in Cape Elizabeth for the past eight years. It’s a great pool and well used by other Scarborough residents like myself. I think that the Scarborough swim program also pays the Cape to use their pool (at very inconvenient times) .

When measured on a cost/benefit basis, we must consider the lifelong benefits that a pool brings to the entire community, both for it’s youngsters and oldsters.

Let’s give this a serious look! Scarborough is a great place to live. Let’s make it even better.

Ken MacLean

Special Ed services excel in Scarborough

To the editor,

Many local residents have heard our town has a great special education department, but until you have experienced it first hand, you don’t understand how wonderful this program can be.

Oftentimes, parents are afraid to learn when a child or family member is diagnosed with a disability. We fear for the label and possible mistreatments they will have for their school years and life ahead of them. We worry that our child is “different” and they may be teased or bullied by their peers. All of these emotions and concerns began for our family when our son was diagnosed on the Autism spectrum. I am writing to share how fortunate our community is to have such incredible special education services and employees who treat these students with such compassion. From the head administrators to the teachers, therapists, and councilors, they are all so dedicated to each of the students. It is evident that they all strive to help teach the kids skills to succeed and improve in both academics and daily life skills.

Our son currently attends Blue Point School as a kindergartener. He was diagnosed around age three and early intervention has been a huge success. His transition from a small preschool classroom to a new public school with over 200 kids was a concern for all of us. The special education department coordinated his annual IEP meeting where a plan was developed in hopes for him to thrive in his first year at school. In the past six months alone he has bloomed before our eyes. He has confidence to talk and make new friends, participate in class, and even learned to tie a shoe (with help from his OT). The encouragement he receives both academically and socially has blown our expectations away. We understand there are many different types of cases and diagnoses that range in severity, but in our experience the staff does their very best to make each child feel comfortable while challenging them to meet specific tailored goals.

We applaud all teachers, therapists, counselors, & school administrators in this town. Not only in the special education department but in our entire community. The pandemic has made life much more challenging, but the efforts to help our students succeed are still evident. Our initial fear for our child’s future has shifted into joy watching him excel in areas we never thought were possible. We can’t express enough how grateful we are, and privileged we feel to raise a family in Scarborough. It is heartwarming to know that we live in a town that provides so much support for all students including the ones who need some extra help.

Brianna Floyd

Council should address growth concerns

To the editor,

I am responding to the Council Corner letter titled “Saving tax dollars with TIFs” (March 4 edition) from Ken Johnson, a member of the Scarborough Town Council. Although I agree that TIFs can be helpful for a growing community, I have some concerns about the proposed TIF expansion for the Downtown TIF District. My understanding from Mr. Johnson’s letter is that 44% of this district includes the Downs property, currently owned and being developed by Risbara Bros. Construction. The Council is currently considering a proposal to shelter 100% of added assessed value in the downtown TIF district.

Scarborough Town management conducted a recent survey to evaluate citizen’s satisfaction and concerns. Scarborough received very high rankings on police, fire road maintenance, recreation, and high rankings on education. However, citizens also expressed great concern about Scarborough’s rapid growth and the increased traffic because of that growth. I believe the Town should take these concerns seriously.

In the last few years, multiple forces (attractiveness of the community to young families and retirees and the lack of buildable land in Cumberland County) have combined to increase pressure on the town for more housing and commercial development. While developers can help a community achieve its livability goals, the decision to proceed should depend on what is best for the community as a whole. This does not mean no growth or more growth, it means smart growth.

Currently, Scarborough has several requests for new or expanded development. At the same time, the Town’s recent citizen survey identified growth as a major concern. If the Town leaders want to build trust with its citizens, it needs to listen to their concerns and respond accordingly. More housing puts more pressure on our already overcrowded schools and roads. Meanwhile, the expressed desires for a community center, pool and other community amenities requested by Scarborough citizens are not being addressed.

It seems like the right time to slow Scarborough’s development and assure it is smart development as supported by its citizens.

Walter Novey