<< Back 12/25/02 Vote possible on Cashiers incorporation SMN Incorporation probably won’t have any effect on whether Lowes comes to Cashiers, but the controversy about the giant retailer is directly related to many of the same issues incorporation supporters talk about. “There are always great concerns around here about uncontrolled growth,” said Page Bernstein, one of a committee of five that has been working on getting the Jackson County community incorporated. The committee has written a proposed charter, gotten the support of Sen. Bob Carpenter and Rep. Phil Haire, attained the necessary signatures and presented their proposal to the General Assembly’s commission on Municipal Incorporation. Bernstein said the commission will check out the validity of their work and then turn the proposal over to the General Assembly. If all goes will, there could be a referendum on the proposal sometime this spring or summer. “We would hope to have it by late April or early May,” said Bernstein. If the referendum passes, Bernstein thinks the town could provide some of the necessary services — fire, police, solid waste and zoning. What services are provided, though, would be up to the new mayor and aldermen. Bernstein said zoning is one issue he hopes a board would take up. He is against the Lowes now being considered for Cashiers. “I am definitely not anti-growth, but at least 17 percent of potential voters who signed our petition want some kind of land management,” said Bernstein. The petition turned over to the state had 113 registered voters out of the 127 who signed. The town as configured by the petition now in Raleigh would have 597 registered voters, said Bernstein. Eddie Madden, the county commissioner from the district, said he supports holding the referendum. Madden would not say whether he personally supports incorporation “I am not a proponent of incorporation. I am concerned about the effect of another millage on folks who live up here,” said Madden. “The reality is that it would hurt some people.”