Twenty years ago, George H.W. Bush was roundly criticized for a lack of what he called, "that vision thing." His failure to paint for the country a future that addressed the problems and worries of the day was one of the factors that turned him out of office after only one term. He didn't have a vision, and was annoyed when it was pointed out to him that a vision is part of the job.

Disregarding for the moment the quasi-religious overtones, having a vision is a necessary component of making any kind of progress forward. Locally, we seem to have no lack of visionary thinking.

A draft comprehensive plan for the Village of Ellenville was released two weeks ago. It's an interesting document, highlighting the ups and downs of the local economy since Ellenville was founded in 1805 to the present, and describing the current economic plight with much detail. Its primary purpose is to guide municipal decisions to create a changed and improved community; in short, it's the vision that our municipal leaders may likely be working toward. But what kind of vision is it really?

The vision described is fairly generic, a "Mountain Gateway" area, a "Marketplace," and, in theory, will transform Ellenville into a much better place than it is now. Who wouldn't want a bunch of small, low-impact manufacturers to quietly create hundreds of high-paying jobs? What isn't specified is just who those manufacturers are, and why they will come here. That really isn't the point of a vision, it's just a pretty picture to work towards, and to make sure public policy doesn't get in the way.

But the weakness of any vision for Ellenville is that Ellenville, or any small community for that matter, does not exist in a vacuum. Surrounding Ellenville is a township with a very different sort of vision…one that rather see developments like Wal-Mart that, at least in many other areas before this one, tend to kill small villages, or developments like casinos that can create true nightmares for a community. When one vision comes into conflict with another — and they directly influence each other in such intimate ways — visions can be rendered moot.

Let's take a step even further back: the new vision must exist in New York State…a state with a severe budget crisis; the vision must work within a nation struggling with an oft-discussed and yet oft-denied recession; and the vision must work within a global economy where America's economic power is steadily weakening.

No one can — or should — expect a small team of public planners to solve the problems of the universe, but there needs to be some acknowledgement that the community's problems, and its future, may not be entirely in its own hands.

Ellenville's future vision, as outlined in the plan, may absolutely be what is best for Ellenville — but by not addressing and assessing the many, many problems on the town, county, state, national, and global levels, much of which is largely responsible for putting the village in its current economic situation, this vision may wind up as nothing more than just that: a vision, ephemeral, and gone upon waking.

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