In the NYT: Yossi Gestetner, who does public relations work for ultra-Orthdox groups and businesses, said that Mr. St. Lawrence had done a good job of navigating diverse interests, and that critics were mostly just fighting change and growth.
“Once upon a time Manhattan was not developed either,” he said. “Is there a rule on the books that a certain place needs to be rural from now to eternity?
“I understand that many people moved here for the rural environment and even many of the Hasidim feel there’s too much development. But anyone who owns property — if they don’t like it, if they feel the taxes are too much — they can sell their property for two or three times what they would have gotten 15 years ago, and this is the direct result of the growth in the Jewish community and the changes allowing more development.”