“Keep Little Compton little.” I have been hearing this slogan for years, but this year I heard it as a campaign suggestion of the Republicans in this year’s election. I would really like to know what it exactly means. Does it mean no more construction of new homes? Because it seems that there is more construction now than ever. On one street in Chace Point alone, there is one brand new property and two more being built.

Does it mean not wanting “outsiders” (people who have not lived here before) to buy up the homes that are for sale? Unfortunately, it seems that only outsiders can afford the homes that are being sold due to the astronomical prices that are being set on the houses for sale.

Does it mean preserving the land for farmers and farming? Wonderful thought, but most farmers cannot afford the high cost of the land that they could farm if it were available. Not only that, but there is no housing that is affordable for them or their employees to stay settled here to farm the land.

I would hope in “keeping Little Compton little” that we consider the generations of families who created this community to be as wonderful as it is. And now, those families cannot stay together in this community that they created because the children who work in this community cannot afford to live here. And, when children are not staying in their home town, their children are not being raised here. As we know, the number of students in the school continues to go down. Is that part of keeping Little Compton little? Eliminating the school?

I digress. I do hope that if the Republican Party that has controlled the government of Little Compton for almost 80 years, with the exception of a few years, does, in fact, want to keep Little Compton little, that they would please clarify what they mean by that and where and how that could happen.

Thank you.

Bonnie Phinney

Little Compton