We, the undersigned, are residents of Delaware County and have become aware through Delaware County Engineer Chris Bauserman that he among others at the county and state levels are advocating for a Southern Interchange that would be between the “Estates at Cheshire” residential development and the Simon/Tanger Outlet Center on I71 South of the existing 36/37 Exit. We are against any such Southern Interchange proposal as it negatively impacts the existing residents throughout the Berkshire/Sunbury Region and destroys our rural way of life. A Southern Interchange and the resulting east-west road would invite commercial development south of what is already planned for the 36/37 corridor and directly to the north of existing low-density residences. It would also force the future commercial development traffic on Northstar (Delaware Co./ODOT shows future in that area to be bigger than all of Polaris) to the south causing delays, congestion, and negatively affecting our way of life. We also believe that future master planning and zoning should keep all future commercial growth north of the Simon/Tanger Outlet Center to create a buffer between this commercial area and the residential areas.

We understand the traffic issues and believe that a future interchange should be located north of the existing 36/37 Exit as that is where the vast majority of the future commercial and residential growth will be in the Region and an exit should be built there to accommodate the future traffic demands of those properties. A Northern Interchange has minimal impact on existing residents, and makes the most sense.

We ask our federal, state, and local officials to stop advocating for a Southern Interchange and instead work with the residents of this Region to accommodate a more resident-friendly solution.