Without question, Cherokee and surrounding counties need more good, decent-paying jobs with some medical benefits, the kind of employment that can take care of a family. So, again without question, our elected officials owe it to us to look into any and all possibilities for economic development.

However, the proposed Interstate 3 is not the answer in this area.

It’s understandable why Georgia and Tennessee officials are so hot to build the new highway. It would provide a direct route from Savannah to Knoxville, improving access to those urban cities and their well-established industrial and military job bases while bypassing the ever-present road rage that is the interstate system in and around Atlanta.

What’s harder to understand is why any North Carolina official would be gung-ho about the plan. There would likely be just one exit in Cherokee County and another in Clay County, hardly enough to put us on the map. And the potential problems are legion.

More on that later. For a moment, let’s focus on the positives an interstate would bring: 1) a more accessible transportation system, which would help recruit and retain businesses; and 2) potential economic development at the exits.

That all looks good on paper. However, as for the first rationale, building the long-proposed new route around the Ocoee Gorge to Chattanooga, Tenn., and four-laning Spur 60 in Georgia would do as much, if not more, for the area than I-3. And President Bush’s Central American Free-Trade Agreement – NAFTA’s new cohort – has made it that much more difficult for manufacturing and textile businesses to even stay in the country, much less come to rural America.

As for reason No. 2, let’s look at Columbia County, Fla., which has three exits on Interstate 10 and four more on Interstate 75. Only the exit at U.S. 90 in Lake City has spurred any kind of real development. I-10 and I-75 come together just north of Lake City, and despite officials’ repeated assurances that “something big” would come to the area, there is still nothing but grass and trees within miles of what should be a burgeoning intersection.

My family lived in Lake City for 4 1/2 years, so this is not secondhand knowledge. Earlier this month, we passed through while visiting family and friends, but nothing has changed other than another hotel or two at U.S. 90. And this is in one of the fastest-growing counties in Florida, one of the fastest-growing states.

The sad truth is while interstate exits have helped create mini-boons in places like Gainesville, Fla., and Marietta, Ga., they haven’t done much for small towns. Traveling south down I-75 is an ugly sight, with the most prominent businesses being convenience stores, dirty gas stations and truck stops. Interstate exits are also a popular hangout for drifters and strip clubs, resulting in more crime and the kind of establishments most local folks wouldn’t want in their hometown.

Cherokee County has already lost some of its charm due to unregulated development, and the lack of a land-use plan means anything would go if I-3 became a reality. Preserving our environment, mountains and streams is much more important – to our culture and economy – than anything an interstate could provide.

David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout.

Don't get fooled by the rhetoric

by John Carson

Sitting in Enloe Auditorium on Thursday night proved to be an interesting experience. About 300 people gathered to learn more at Interstate 3 and the effects – good and bad – the proposed road would have on our area.

Moderator Bob Grove’s opening remark that “this is not an ambush” proved very true. It’s tough to conduct an ambush if there is no one to ambush, and that’s what Thursday’s meeting pretty much seemed to be.

There were lots of folks there opposed the road. Finding someone in favor of it was quite a different story. Given that, the information relayed in the meeting must be taken with a grain of salt. It was virtually all coming from one side of the issue.

Organizers did a good job lining up their speakers. Subsequently, the speakers did their part in taking their time and doing with it what they do best – get their side across with the most effect to hopefully sway opinion.

Suffice it to say, those at the meeting were given the expected white-knuckle, scare-you-to-death report on potential nuclear transport and effects the road would have on the environment.

It goes without saying the road will have a tremendous environmental impact, has the potential for nuclear disaster and is not the economic nirvanna some say it will be.
However, the most interesting thing to come out of the meeting were the reasons given in Congress on why the road is needed.

According to U.S. Rep. Charles Norwood (R-Ga.), the road is needed to make transport of military personnel and equipment easier, to provide a straighter shot between Savannah, Ga., and Knoxville, Tenn., and because this area is “not adequately served” by an interstate.

Taking the latter first, current interstates circumvent this area because it was meant to be left as pristine as possible. What is the point in destroying portions of that?
In terms of the other reasons, they are political rhetoric phrased in a way to make the general public believe it is necessary.

We didn’t need a new interstate for military transport during the Cold War, so why is it so needed now? Are we in danger of an invasion or large-scale war that Congress isn’t telling us about?

The rhetoric ties into Norwood’s desire to name the interstate after the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division.

Given our post-9/11 mentality, the strategy is perfect. Regardless of all the other issues, how you can oppose a road that is being named after one of our finest military units? Why, that’s un-American ... right?

John Carson is former editor of The Cherokee Scout.

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