The redevelopment of the Edgewater Hotel has, like any major building project, been met with a great amount of support and a considerable amount of opposition. And like any fun issue in Madison, it has its share of frustrating conspiracy theorists.

But one thing is for sure: this is a sound plan worthy of our support and worth of the $16.8 million in Tax Increment Financing funds being requested from the city. A project of this magnitude will turn a dilapidated hotel into one that can attract large conventions to Madison, creating jobs and a community center in a densely populated area. This simply cannot be passed up.

Despite our appreciation of the project itself, the political dogfights underlying this debate have not only become annoying but are also distracting from the greater discourse.

We understand the main concern voiced by Capitol Neighborhoods, Inc. If the city allows this high-rise to be built, developers might push the city to continue that trend throughout the Mansion Hill and State-Langdon neighborhoods, destroying downtown’s purest residential area. We do not want Langdon Street to become Johnson Street, and it is up to Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and future city leaders to keep that from happening.

But even after this reasonable concern, CNI began to whine about increased traffic and obstructed views without considering that the developer, Hammes Company, has made a considerable number of changes to take these issues into account, rewriting their blueprints and redirecting traffic flow.

It is also difficult to know whether property values will increase significantly in the neighborhood as a result of the project. Hammes claims it will not drastically affect current buildings unless they are improved. This claim is based on the fact that the values of existing properties surrounding Monona Terrace did not rise at an increased rate following the 1997 completion of that building. This comparison is hardly apt — Mansion Hill is not the least bit comparable to the Monona lakefront.

So, we are concerned the Edgewater expansion will ultimately increase property values throughout the area, causing an increase in property taxes. This could serve as a problem for the large fraternity and sorority houses on Langdon. They have a relatively low turnover rate, making higher property values a detriment in the end, since the new costs have to be passed on to students in the form of higher rent.

The State-Langdon Neighborhood Association needs to reach out to Greek leaders now and have a discussion about how this could affect the Greek system — something they should have done before prematurely and irresponsibly endorsing the plan this summer. State-Langdon broke off from CNI to represent student interests. Yes, Greeks are stereotypically thought of as being disinterested in city politics, but State-Langdon represents them, and there are enough who do care and can convey to each chapter why this is deserving of their attention.

The debate over this project has unfortunately devolved into paranoid discussion of backdoor lobbying, astroturfing and secret illuminati-style schemes to steal Madison’s very soul. The exposure these allegations have received has taken attention away from more important elements regarding this development.

Mr. Cieslewicz backs the Edgewater renovation, and with his new Obama-esque ‘let’s-push-everything-through-at-once’ hardnosed politicking, this is going to happen. We may have our concerns about the precedent it will set, but this is a huge investment that should be welcomed by the surrounding neighborhood.