To The Editor: Dennis Township Planning Board is updating its master plan. The board is looking for input from residents as to the direction the township will take in the future regarding development. Do we want a Wal-Mart next to Marge’s Diner? For that matter, would we prefer the culinary option of an Applebee’s in Clermont? Do residents prefer the development of smaller, locally-owned “mom and pop” type businesses along Route 9 or are we hankering to shop (and live) Tilton Road style? The state’s “smart growth” plan calls for development to take place in centers. In our case, the centers are in Clermont and Ocean View along Route 9. Of course, embracing this concept assumes that residents consider any plan originating from the state to be “smart” and that we want some sort of development in the township. I, for one, deliberately chose to move to Clermont to get away from development, be it “smart” or the form it usually takes. I like the township’s building lot size requirements and a community that tends to discourage bigger ticket development. Something about it works as Dennis Township is consistently listed as one of the more desirable places to live in the state. However, we’re told by the experts that more growth is “inevitable” and we’d better embrace the plan in some form in order to save Dennis from the havoc of sprawl that has so drastically changed so much of rural New Jersey. So the planning board’s effort to solicit public input before it deliberates is laudable and we’d better take advantage of it to let them know what we want for our future. The questionnaire can be downloaded and printed out from the township’s Web site, www.dennistwp.org. RAY REBMANN Clermont