To the Editor:

I have been a proud employee of the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (GSMR) for nine years and an active member of this community for 20 years. I have had first-hand opportunity to witness GSMR’s phenomenal growth in the Bryson City community and I have watched and enjoyed the growth of Bryson City businesses and tourism in Swain County and beyond as well. Surely there can be no doubt that GSMR has played a major role in this growth, attracting over 200,000 visitors to the area year after year. It also goes without saying GSMR adds significantly to the economic impact of Bryson City as a major employer in this community.

I know first hand of some of GSMR’s lesser-known activities, too, including the many charities and other nonprofit groups who have only to ask for GSMR’s help in their fundraising activities.

With all this said, I would like to speak to the article published by the Smoky Mountain Times that touted the “failure” of the trial effort by GSMR to demonstrate how closing Fry Street would be beneficial. It would seem a major factor in this situation has to be the town in launching a street project at the Mitchell and Everett streets intersection and on down Bryson Street just as the busy fall color season in October began and continuing on into The Polar Express and Christmas shopping season. The street work made access to the Bryson Street entrance of the parking lot set up by GSMR for access to the Fry Street businesses difficult and on some days, impossible. Bad weather also played a role, delaying the town’s completion of the Bryson Street project as well as affecting shoppers being out and about.

It would seem that those claiming to be losing business due to the closing of Fry Street are being a bit disingenuous given these factors. I would also wonder how the town leadership would be able to make a definitive statement about GSMR being “bad neighbors” and deciding even before the Polar season is over that closing Fry Street is a failure. It makes for great headlines, but it is not helpful to the image of this beautiful town for the town board to be blocking efforts to make Fry Street a more attractive and practical community space as well as making it safer for everyone. In fact, safety is the prime factor that generated the ideas leading to the closing of the street in the first place. 

Three of my years as a GSMR employee were spent as a ticket agent in the depot. The number of times I and other staff witnessed pedestrians walking on Fry Street being endangered by traffic is too many to tell.

I would urge the town board to pledge to set aside former prejudices and emotions and look at this issue from an objective and informed position.

Gail Findlay

Bryson City