We all have rights. Auburn has the right to have a Wal-Mart. If you don’t like their practices, the solution is easy — don’t shop there.

Mr. (Jim) Conkey has a right to sell his property. I have the right to build a hotel. But “rights” don’t equal entitlement.

Mr. Conkey is not entitled to have anything he wants on that property. I am not entitled to build a hotel on my street. That is why we have county government and elected officials to do responsible, thoughtful planning of our community.

Anyone who drives on Highway 49 knows the stretch from Luther Road to Bell Road is one of the worst-congested in Auburn. To put a high-traffic business in the Bohemia location is completely irresponsible.

To back up a large store to an established neighborhood (or turn a quiet, narrow street into an access road) is to ignore these longtime county residents’ quality of life.

We’re all watching to see if our officials do what they’re supposed to do — provide services to the community, income for the county and jobs for its citizens — but in the right location.

Sharon Stanners Smith, Auburn