REZONE THE FORT, CITIZEN PETITION

March 31, 2012

At the Planning Board meeting on Monday, March 12, 2012, after delivering my remarks, I presented the board with a "Rezone the Fort, Save Gloucester", citizen" petition
containing 328 names of fellow Gloucester citizens.

These signatures were collected at the Post Office entrance and during several cold stints at Market Basket, Gloucester Crossing, a week prior to the meeting. While this petition and an online version containing over 500 signers, and still counting, represents a cross section of our community's five wards and is impressive by its very number; to me, there's another side to this story, even more laudatory.

Every signer of my petititon came with a positive comment and I quote: "It's about time"; "It's
long overdue"; "We need to open neighborhood fire stations"; "My son bought his first house, he needs tax help"; "Gloucester needs this downtown hotel"; "Clean up the Fort"; etc.

The positive eager responses and feedback to this petition is running 20 - 1 in favor of this hotel development. I found these verbal responses even more impressive and inspirational than the
actual number of signatures collected. As Paul Harvey would say, "AND THAT'S THE REST OF THE STORY."

Ron Gilson