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LETTERS / Glad You Asked! Who Does the Blowing Rock Civic Association Represent?

Dear Editor,

The Civic Association strives to be a unifying voice for all homeowners in Blowing Rock.

We consider all homeowners as residents whether full-time or part-time as all are taxpayers.

Our membership reflects the demographics of our unique resort village.

The makeup of our homeowners is actually hard to define because there are so many variations, but basically 20% are full-time and 80% are seasonal. Full-time equates to the reported population who claims Blowing Rock as their permanent address, but some of that group, like us, also have second homes elsewhere. There are approximately 1,200 permanent homeowners, 800 voters and 6,500 homeowners in total. The point is that we all are homeowners and full-time taxpayers who love Blowing Rock and have chosen to invest our lives in the community. This has been the case for over 100 years.

We advocate for and educate the community on issues facing the village. You can read our 2020 Advocacy Plan to understand our goals and strategies to protect our vibrant village, residential economy and neighborhoods. These goals reflect serving our entire homeowner community. See the following link.

http://www.brcivic.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blowing-Rock-Civic-Association-Advocacy-Plan-2020-updated.pdf

I agree with the authors’ comment that our residents are committed to complying with rules to protect the health of our community. The numerous phone calls that I have received and our personal experience confirm his view, but quarantine for 14 days is much more difficult than stay at home.

Our board of directors recommended that the county lift the quarantine order for all residents at the beginning of the Governor’s Phase 1 plan to re-open the state based on data-driven decisions. We believe that the returning homeowners are a lower risk than tourists. Returning homeowners are traveling from one Stay at Home community to another and those restrictions are adequate to allow for an orderly return to Blowing Rock.

If homeowners wait until the County lifts the quarantine order at the same time as they lift the rental restriction order then both homeowners and tourists could descend on our town at once. So, we believe a phased approach makes more sense.

We all understand the fear and emotion that the pandemic has caused, but we need to implement a rationale and fair plan for the county that is in sync with the Governor’s plan.

Personally, I have come to believe that to stay safe, I must manage my own personal risk as we cannot control the actions of other people even if that means choosing to live under a personal stay at home life-style for the foreseeable future.

 

Tim Gupton

President

Blowing Rock Civic Association