Please circulate this note and my letter below in opposition to the bike path. 
Correct me if I am mistaken as I missed one meeting this summer, but I believe that the email of 11/30/08 is the first time any concrete proposal about a bike path was distributed to the membership. As the bike path proposal was the product of many years of effort by the Bike Path Committee, it would have been helpful if we were we provided with at least a draft proposal before the Committee represented to the Town that it had 70% support from the CIA or Chappy community.
I think the Committee is well intentioned and should be complemented on its hard work. Nothing gets done without such commitment. The CIA, however, could have a more reliable and meaningful procedures in place to inform and notify its membership before they are asked to express their support for any Committee project, and before a Committee is authorized to represent to the Town that it has the CIA’ membership support. The proposal could have been emailed or mailed to the entire CIA membership. A general questionnaire about whether the community in the abstract “favors” or does “not favor” a bike path, with no details about its placement, construction or impact, is not terribly meaningful or informed. 
There clearly are competing and sometimes conflicting interests by the membership. As a summer resident on Chappy, I may lean more towards preserving the rural beauty of the island just the way it is than others. For others, there may be greater interest in change and “progress.” Both sides of the debate on the bike path proposal have legitimate concerns, but if the CIA is attempting to approximate an informed democratic process, implementing procedures that require full disclosure of potentially conflicting interests as well as the details of any proposed project (such as the bike path, firehouse, tennis court, ferry, Trustees, or zoning projects) would enhance the transparency of the process. Thanks, 
Brad 
Dear Selectperson:
Terry Forde, president of the CIA, has announced that next summer there will be a meeting of the CIA to discuss the pros and cons of the proposal of building bike paths on Chappy. I request that the selectmen wait on any consideration of the issue until the residents of Chappy have had this meeting. 
As an avid bicyclist and a Chappy summer resident and home owner for over 50 years, I have serious reservations as to whether bike path on Chappy is advisable. I think the residents should be better informed and, after information is distributed, the issue should be fully debated by CIA before any actions are taken. 
FYI, I am a member of Transportations Alternatives in NYC, commute in NYC by bike, and have been pushing the creation of bike paths in NYC. However, I believe that the Chappy ferry is a unique natural regulator of auto traffic decreasing the risk of bike accidents on Chappy. Chappy is also unique in its small size. For an island that is only 3 miles long with traffic naturally regulated and limited by the ferry, it is unclear to me what a bike path will add of value. 
I believe we should consider the negatives as to the impact of a bike path on the rural charm of the island and whether any objective evidence exists that a bike path on Chappy, in particular, would significantly enhance the safety of bikers. If a bike path is being seriously considered, I believe the residents of Chappy should see it in its proposed concrete form, ie a map or model, so we can objectively weigh the real impact. If government funds may dictate the creation of a 12’ wide bike path that will substantially impact the charm of Chappy roads and invite moped and other illegal use, I not sure the upside on safety will be significant. FYI, my doctor of 20 years recently was killed when a truck turned into him on the NYC Westside bike path. I could see a similar problem with cars turning into the hidden drives on Chappy, particularly at night. 
I know there is a dedicated group on Chappy that have been fighting for a bike path for years, and I was initially a supporter of the idea in the abstract. I respect their intentions and am mindful that these concerns may present just one more delay. However, I believe, once again, the rural beauty of Chappy is just too fragile to approach it any other way. 
In the interest of full disclosure, since our house is near the main road, I am also concerned about the impact of 12’ paved bike path adjacent to our house. Before taking a final position, I would like to see the real size and proposed route[s] of the path. To my knowledge, no one has made that information available to the Chappy residents. The CIA meeting would provide residents with an opportunity to gather that type of important information. 
On the pro bike path side of the debate, I can see an argument in favor of safety of children on bikes, but again, am not sure the Chappy specific evidence, if any, necessarily will support a path even for children. The best safety for bikers is often to just increase their numbers on the roads. Adding more asphalt to Chappy, whether road widening or a hidden bike path, may just increase the speed of both bikers and autos. 
A question to think about, are those advocating a bike path the people regularly on bikes, or the people in autos who would rather not be inconvenienced by the bikers? 
Thank you for your consideration. 
Brad Conover