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Corporate graffiti offends visitors

Literally millions of tax dollars are being spent every year promoting tourism, trying to attract visitors to help sustain local economies.

Dear Editor.

Literally millions of tax dollars are being spent every year promoting tourism, trying to attract visitors to help sustain local economies.

But the first impressions we expose those tourists to when they arrive in the Okanagan Valley, is what must be the biggest and the most obnoxious collection of corporate graffiti.

Visitors are all finding it extremely offensive, and are wondering why our politicians are allowing this to happen.

If we want those tourists to continue to come here, we have to ban all off-site advertising as part of our strategy to promote tourism, and then penalize businesses who do not comply.

A business license is not a permit to deface public properties with graffiti.

To lead by example, Summerland city council should also rescind the plan to waste precious tax dollars on some glitzy sign that will only add to the proliferation of that graffiti.

The tourist info center on the highway and existing signage is already more than adequate.

Big box stores are sucking the lifeblood out of the local downtown business core.

Visitors are drawn to those stores and are not coming back, no matter how big and ugly those billboards are.

If local businesses want to survive in this market they may have to reconsider their business plans, or follow their customers.

To deface our downtown, our flowerbeds and public boulevards with graffiti will only promote the exodus.

Andy Thomsen

Summerland