Today I traveled with my sponsor, Mr. T. David Mitchell, to the historic village of Richfield to deal with city officials on a zoning issue. Zoning in a community is a restriction on the way that land can be used whether residential, commerical, industrial, etc. Mr. Mitchell's goal is to change an old abandoned school located on West Steetsboro in the heart of the community into a large-scale nursing and assisted living facility. The problem is with such a quaint historic community, development of this scale is not widely accepted. While the benefits of this type of development in a small village includes more jobs, better health services, lower taxes, and a location for community activities, the cons which officials and residents worry about are traffic patterns, large scale development, and a disruption in the image of the town. We met with the economic director of the village, Ralph Waszack, who drove us around the entire town, giving us a feel for the community and its values. As Mr. Waszack spoke passionately about the historic nature of the community and his listing of what seemed like the geneaology of each member, Mr. Mitchell and I received a view of what type of development this community needed. Unlike many lawyers, Mr. Mitchell is open to negotiation and changing his original plans to meet the needs of those who will be affected by his developments. In the arduous process of getting building rights, insurance, and city officials on his side, Mr. Mitchell works hard to create the best possible development for the surrounding location. The stereotype of lawyers being screaming, stubborn, and impossible human beings out for their own benefit is truly false in the case of my sponsor. I learned from him how much a lawyer can help through advising and comprimising to bring a better outcome for a community.
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