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Murals Belong in Urban Areas

I noticed on the front page of the Jan. 19 Harbor News ("Commemorating a Life") that yet another mural has been painted on the side of yet another store in our town of Old Saybrook's downtown. Are the business owners downtown going to continue to let every person with an idea paint their philosophy on the sides of their businesses? Urban murals belong in urban areas, i.e., Hartford, New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, etc. As any informed resident of our town knows, Old Saybrook goes way back to 1635 with a rich Colonial history. That history needs to be preserved in how our town looks, especially in the downtown area, where visitors are likely to get their first impression of our town. I have personal philosophies too, but I don't go to a store owner downtown and paint a mural about them. Let the person or persons making the decision about whether a mural is to be painted on the side of a building remember that our town, along with many other fine historic New England towns, needs to keep that heritage unbroken in the appearance of our towns.

Jeffrey L. Schieding

Old Saybrook