To the editor:

In 1967, when I first moved to the San Diego area, a major freeway was just being finished connecting all the way from Tijuana to Canada.

When I joined the Encinitas Chamber of Commerce the debate was still going on about what would have been the best route for the freeway, including one seriously proposed location along the beach, which fortunately didn’t happen in Encinitas!

Residents and businesses expected a fatal decline in the town. But most everyone benefitted quickly by getting all the through traffic out and having a slower pace in town — perfect for the locals to shop more and tourists and visitors to walk around in a more relaxed environment.

Property values soared. Land along the freeway went way up, and new development came in and for the most part was well planned and done well.

Today, few people there would want to go back to the pre-freeway days.

Similarly, as it pertains to this area and to Route 460 improvements, the population will increase some in the most desirable areas, and that still assumes we save the wetlands as a great resource for now and for future generations.

Suffolk residents will mostly like the upgrades and changes around the Route 58 interchange and all the new growth that will take place nearby. Few will want all the old through traffic and trucking back in the downtown area.

On the other hand, through traffic will only increase, causing further problems for the towns along Route 460 to the west of Suffolk.

Stuart Resor

Suffolk