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January 12,2004 Dear Mayor Malecha, Important and relevant towns and cities exist because of access,visibility,natural boundaries and/or natural beauty. Brainerd has the Mississippi River.Duluth has Lake Superior. Walker has Leech Lake. Stillwater has the St.Croix River. Chicago has Lake Michigan. Cannel,CA,has coastal beauty and the Pacific Ocean. New York has the Hudson River and East River with access to the Atlantic Ocean. The list goes on! Each of these towns/cities has grown and thrived because they have taken advantage of their major asset. What is the major asset of Pequot Lakes? I believe it is Highway 371 in its present location(thru town)and the access it provides to incredible lakes. There is no question in our minds thatPequot Lakes has grown and thrived because of the lakes and a thru town Hwy 371. Hwy 371 in its present location is the Northwest Passage to the national treasure of Minnesota lakes. It is the lifeline to our future! Since Hwy 371 in its present location is our most important asset we should do everything in our power to retain and enhance this advantage. Our business leaders,our political leaders,and our community leaders should do everything in our respective powers to preserve this competitive asset. America is littered with smaller towns that have been by-passed and have lost their purpose. There is no question that Hwy 371 in its present location is the lifeline to a growing and relevant Pequot Lakes. It is the"job"of MNDOT to move traffic and move it safely. It is the"job"of the business,political and citizen leaders of Pequot Lakes to preserve and enhance the future relevance of our town. If our business and citizen leaders choose a path of indifference or inaction,our future fate WII be determined by those whose only"job"is to move traffic regardless of the consequences to the town of Pequot Lakes. The compromise we ought to seek is a super safe and relatively fast thru town route. It is not in the best interests of Pequot Lakes to move traffic around our town at 65+miles per hour with no reason to stop and experience the charm of a real unique and charming Pequot Lakes. If MNDOT has its way our city will become one of the anonymous exit signs along Hwy 371 with a dying downtavn. A super safe and relatively fast thru town route is achievable if we are willful enough to force the issue. This will force MNDOT to focus on the right and important issue of achieving a super safe and relatively fast thru town route. This will assure that we will continue to grow in relevance and have the tax base to improve our schools and the other important community services that will help us serve our citizens even better. Now is the time to determine our future rather than have it determined by those who do not live, invest,and provide critical services that continue to improve the quality of life in Pequot Lakes. Hwy 371 in its present location is critical to the future of our city. Sincerely, Karen A Struve George Johnson Owner Operator Beautiful Antiques and More Decoys...by George 30960 Government Drive Pequot Lakes,MN 56472