While drivers idle, Bellevue landowner pushing for rich, trendy image

Kemper Freeman is spending his own money to prevent light rail for two reasons: He does not want well-off Eastside residents to have easier access to Seattle and he does not want less well-off Seattle residents —white or people of color —to have easier access to the Eastside. [“Kemper’s last stand,” page one, May 2.]

Those who reason that Freeman would want light rail because it increases the number of customers who visit his developments do not understand that he wants his patrons to be rich, trendy Eastside residents —not young, boisterous Seattleites who cannot afford to buy items from the stores that rent space from him. The latter group ruins the image he is trying to project, and the “experience” he wants his ideal patrons to have when they shop.

For everyone else however, light rail is beneficial. It would reduce congestion and make the transition easier when oil ceases to be a dependable resource.

I urge all Eastside residents who want light rail through downtown Seattle to boycott the Bellevue Collection until this madness has ended. With our wallets, we could show Freeman that he does not speak for the rest of the Eastside.

— Rose Petersky, Bellevue