To the Editor:
I don’t know what has happened to my friend, Gerry Duffy. In the past I had considered him to be a reasonable and smart person. But the McIntyre project seems to have changed all of that. He was initially a supporter of both the first Redgate/Kane proposal, and the City Council that agreed to that plan. When the public rejected the plan and voted out all but one of the supporters of that plan, Mr. Duffy seems to have become a warrior against the new City Council, and a staunch advocate for the Redgate/Kane organization.
At the same time, he regularly expresses his concerns that our city would be sued by that organization, despite the fact that our city has its own lawyers. Even though he previously had taken part in Portsmouth Listens groups, he was skeptical of the need for this process when it came to the McIntyre project, even though support for it in the city was very strong. Even though Gerry has traveled in many European countries and must have noticed the how urban landscapes were preserved but beautified in a way that enlivened and enriched communities, nevertheless, when it came to Portsmouth, he was content to support the original Redgate/Kane proposal. Judging from his almost weekly comments about the project, one could almost assume that he was employed as a PR man by Redgate/Kane.
Now that the Principle Group has presented several visual options to the residents of Portsmouth for consideration, Mr. Duffy seems to be a supporter of Option D, which coincidentally is also the option with the most additional new buildings (five) and the least amount of green space, while disparaging Option G, which only has one addition small building and the most green space. He has even suggested that choosing Option G would surely result in a lawsuit by Redgate/Kane.
I can see that from a developer’s viewpoint, five additional buildings are financially more lucrative than only one building, but which option provides the greater public benefit? That is what should be our goal with this project.
Rep. Peter Somssich, District 27-Ward 3, Portsmouth
Portsmouth, N.H.