Letter to the Editor: In support of Kathy Nolan

Dear Editor:

Kathy Nolan has been the target of some unfair and ill-informed comments since news of the CHA lawsuit was published. Kathy is one of the most accomplished, intelligent and caring people I know. Her hard work and friendship have had a beneficial impact on so many. Kathy has degrees in both medicine and law. She is well-informed and effective in the many hats she wears. In terms of the CHA lawsuit, Kathy is not acting on her own. She is chairperson of an organization with over 400 members who share an appreciation for the unspoiled beauty of the mountains and opposition to the proposed mega-development. We all understand that development that sprawls from the base to the summit of the Belleayre ridge is environmentally unsound. This kind of mega-project has no business adjacent to the “forever wild” Catskill Forest Preserve.

My opposition to the development is basically selfish. I do not want the place that has been my second home throughout my life and is now my first home to be overrun by a project that cannot possibly harmonize with its surroundings. For Kathy and many other CHA members, the development’s impact would not be so close to home which makes their hard work in opposition to this project all the more commendable. Giving the go ahead to the developer would be a blow to the long term prospects of this area. It is looking to the past rather than the future. The era of the white elephant resort has passed into history. People’s unwillingness to accept this fact will not make it any less true. They should not be lashing out in frustration at someone of Kathy’s character and integrity.

Matthew Frisch
Arkville