To the Editor:

We live in a town that has a zoning ordinance designating certain zones for certain types of activities and uses. People rely on this ordinance when setting up businesses and buying homes. Now, we are learning about a property owner on the corner of Hardy Road and Route 101 who wants to change the ordinance to suit its own desires.

The property in issue was purchased by the current owner in 2005. The property was zoned "commercial" in 2005 and did not permit gas stations. The owner was aware of the permitted uses (as well as the uses that weren’t permitted) on this land at the time of purchase.

It is wrong to ask a town to rewrite its zoning ordinance to accommodate landowners who arbitrarily decide sometime after purchase that they want to use their property for something other than what is allowed.

Why should we, a community that relied on and abides by the zoning ordinance, be forced to live with the consequences of a landowner’s self-imposed hardship?

Please consider attending the upcoming workshop on this issue, set for Monday, Oct. 10, at 7pm at BCTV on Meetinghouse Road.

Glenn and Juli Tierney

Bedford