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age Pa Am 4 s NATIONAL BANK OF MINNESOTA January 6, 2003 Pequot Lake City Council PO Box 361 Pequot Lakes, MN 56472 Dear City Council Members, As a banker who has spent most of my working career in Pequot Lakes, I was pleased to read Tom Woog's recent letter to the editor published in the Echo newspaper. Tom accurately summarized the most probable effects a Highway 371 bypass would have on the retail and service businesses/economy in Pequot Lakes. In my work position I have the benefit of viewing the financial statements of many of the local businesses and I can verify that most do not have the ability to overcome the lost revenue, which will occur if a bypass is built. Tom also suggested the potential of a synergistic solution to the safety concerns that need to be addressed with the current Hwy. 371 regardless of whether a `-' new highway bypass or through-town route is adopted. Over the years I have been asked more than once by people relocating to our area or considering a new business opportunity in Pequot Lakes What makes Pequot Lakes the right place for a person to live and work?" My answer has always been the same. First and foremost, it is the natural resources this area is blessed with(lakes and woods) and the type of person that is attracted to this lifestyle. Second, it is the great school system in Pequot Lakes. And third, Pequot Lakes has the good fortune to be located on a major highway that gives our business community great visibility to all the area vacationers, seasonal residents, and other commuters traveling north and south on a daily basis. In my opinion construction of a highway bypass around Pequot Lakes will affect two of these three great attributes. Construction of the bypass undoubtedly means clearing, grading, and paving of what is currently natural and wooded areas that would permanently change the landscape to a more urban environment. It also surely means that the local retail and service businesses will be forced to either relocate to a bypass location or permanently close. The evidence of this reality is irrefutable. Empirical data is readily available to support this conclusion from several Internet sources. If you are interested I can provide Internet sites. A more intuitive way to reach the same conclusion might be to consider local cities or towns that have been bypassed such as Rice, Backus or even Brainerd. The retail centers of these cities have either relocated near the bypass or disappeared. US Highway 2 running across North Dakota is littered with boarded-up downtowns of small cities caused by bypass construction. Conversely, communities such as Spicer, Big Lake, FDIC31279 Brunes Street • P.O.Box 147 • Pequot Lakes,MN 56472 �(r Telephone:(218)568-4999 • Toll Free:(800)821-6876 • Fax:(218)568-5433