Dear Editor, 

Until 2019, we lived in Lake Placid, New York, a small tourist town in the mountains with a ski area close by (sound familiar?). It was a nice place to live, with nice neighborhoods and a sense of community.

About 10 to 15 years ago, outsiders who had never lived in Lake Placid began snatching every home that came up for sale to convert into STRs. It soon became commonplace for homeowners to have to constantly be calling the police to break up loud, drunken parties, and deal with tourists who parked on their lawns and in their driveways. The small police force couldn’t possibly cope, and many homeowners simply gave up and moved away. What had been quiet, safe neighborhoods where everyone knew each other became party towns. And who bought up all those houses that came up for sale? More outsiders, more STRs, more real estate with absentee owners, and the domino effect took over. Sadly, we joined the exodus of homeowners who decided Lake Placid was no longer a fit place to live.

Now that we are Ned residents, we have rediscovered that sense of community and character that Lake Placid once had.

Fortunately, our local government recognized the coming threat and the 2019 ordnance has, perhaps, stemmed the tide so far. This is not necessarily a look at our town’s future, but it is a cautionary tale of what Ned could become if we relax our vigilance against a real threat that has brought about the ruination of many a nice, small town.

Well, Ned is a nice, small town. And to those who want to “grow” our town, I would remind you that Lake Placid used to be just like Ned.

Karl Zaunbrecher 

Nederland