At last, it's East Sherman

When folks get together one week from tonight, practicality and ideology are almost certain to clash.

The topic: What to do with East Sherman Avenue, the bedraggled eastern gateway to Coeur d'Alene.

Who's invited: If you've got constructive ideas, you are.

Time and place: Coeur d'Alene Public Library Community Room, 5-7 p.m.

In those two hours and during another public workshop June 18, a four-letter acronym is almost certain to be invoked. LCDC - Lake City Development Corp., the city's urban renewal agency - already has been recommended by some as a primary funding mechanism for any public-private investment in that area of town. In this case, though, a new district would need to be created, and that's not going to be an easy sell.

Just as LCDC has staunch advocates, it also has rabid detractors. Using tax increment financing for improvements downtown, at McEuen Park and at Riverstone, to name just a few major projects, has divided the community over the past decade at least as much as discrimination ordinances and gun debates have. If somebody's got a grand plan to radically improve the city's eastern entryway without LCDC's help being required, maybe you should be heard from first. A lot of sweat, if not blood, will be saved.

For our part, we agree with City Councilor Dan Gookin when he suggests that neighborhood property owners should participate fully in this discussion, and that their ideas and suggestions should carry substantial weight. They've got the most to gain in any upgrade, and depending on increased traffic and other considerations, some might also have the most to lose.

No matter what, if you've got strong feelings about how East Sherman corridor issues should be addressed, this is no time to stand silently on the sidelines. Participate in these workshops or sound off on the Opinion pages of this newspaper. The city has genuinely solicited your input. Your silence now would suggest that you should remain silent after all the difficult decisions are made.