MAPLEWOOD VILLAGE BULLETIN BOARD: A SYMBOL OF TOWNSHIP IMPACT

It is a bit strange that so many of us made a big deal about the Maplewood Village Alliance tearing down the main bulletin board in Maplewood Village and replacing it with a glass enclosed, locked new one that only posts items approved by the Alliance.


But it also goes to the heart of what makes some communities, well, communities. When the people can choose what to put up in the town square, as it were, and then are barred from it by one group, apparently with little notice or decision-making from the masses, that community feel is lost.


Yes, when issues such as taxes, education, a recent tragic pair of crimes and day-to-day needs are more important, why is this of note? 


Well, it is a clear example of what makes Maplewood great. We are a small town in many good respects and one of them is that people can have their voices heard and that our main business district is still a homey, small town place. I often brag to people that the Village has no chain stores. Even if you count Kings, it is very much a small town store. We have no Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Gap, Trader Joes or Jamba Juice there.


It is very much a walking retail district and with a train station that is centrally located, welcoming.


When these kinds of additions are made and done without community input, the impact is bigger because of the symbolism more than the actual effect.


Hopefully the new bulletin board will be changed so that it can revert to one that is open to the public and available to all who have needed it for years, not just the Alliance.


After initially defending the new bulletin board, Mayor Vic De Luca has yet to respond to my request for his reaction to the uproar that has sparked on MOL. The Alliance also has not responded to an inquiry e-mail.