Missouri Heights not the place for Ascendigo Camp

My letter voices an opinion of a longtime Missouri Heights resident who has examined the Ascendigo Camp proposal and find it to be dangerously incompatible with our locale. I have lived on this arid plateau since 1980 and feel very strongly that this large commercial operation is unsuitable, the most important reasons being water usage and fire danger.

Water: As both a resident and former board member of Kings Row, I am very familiar with the changing nature of our limited water supply. Official acknowledgment of this water situation was proved by our opposition to the Hunt Ranch proposal in 2008 where the development was prevented by a water court decree severely limiting water use in the development that kept it from moving forward. The situation is more desperate now due to continuing home construction. The Ascendigo proposal show the organization’s not understanding both domestic and agricultural water laws and realities.

Wildfire: Since residing here, my home has been threatened four times by wildfire and I have been evacuated twice. Therefore, I would not consider wildfire to be a casual threat to residents’ well being but very and increasing annually. Missouri Heights has experienced seasonally increasing, uncontrollable drought and winds that raise both the possibility and potential spread of wildfire across our neighborhoods. We cannot tolerate the increased water use and subsequent danger posed by a large commercial operation.

This opinion is not about autism, it is about water and fire. The limited amount of water we have on Missouri Heights must be saved for current residents to drink and suppress wildfires, not to be used by a large commercial facility. That possibility is an extreme danger to people that already live here.

Susan Cuseo

Carbondale