Dear Editor:
I am a retired welder and my wife and I have lived in Summerland for 10 years.
We have seen Summerland going steadily downhill every year since we moved here.
More and more businesses have left town; there are fewer jobs; housing for all ages and incomes is almost non-existent; our roads and community buildings have deteriorated and; our property taxes have steadily increased.
Over these years, time and time again we have seen a loud group of naysayers successfully defeat many business proposals and developments including, a residential golf course community and the multi-storey Wharton Street residential proposal.
Now, this same group of loud naysayers are shouting that the Banks Crescent senior housing and care development would be better located on Wharton Street.
It seems this group has changed their minds and it is now okay to build a residential seniors home on Wharton Street.
This same group claims they have 3,000 signatures on a petition against the Banks Crescent senior housing and care facility.
Well, every time this group delivers their new signatures to council, the whole petition is reviewed by Tricia Mayea, the Summerland Manager of Legislative Services. Her report is on the district website.
According to Tricia, there are over 400 signatures on this petition from people who don’t even live in Summerland and other signatures with no address at all. Tricia’s real total is 2056 signatures.
Yet this group keeps saying they have 3,000 signatures when that is simply not true.
Is this reflective of everything else they are saying?
Summerland is in desperate need of jobs, tax revenues and senior care and housing.
I for one, am in favor of the Banks Crescent senior care facility and the jobs, taxes and senior care it will mean for Summerland.
Dennis Curle
Summerland