Dear Editor:
I have sent the following to the Summerland councillors regarding the recommendation from district staff on the public hearing date:
The timing and attendance of this important meeting should not be dictated by neither the developer (who has twice requested a public hearing July 24 and Nov. 2) nor district staff (who in the Jan. 4 update report recommend the end of January.)
The report states that the hatchery has until Jan. 22 to respond to the third-party report and so I believe it would not be prudent to schedule a public hearing prior to hearing from the hatchery.
With all the effort and time put in by Summerland residents and the anguish it has created over the past 18 months, everyone deserves to be heard.
With what’s at stake — changing the small town feel of Summerland with a big box condo development — now is not the time for council to feel that they may be being coerced into making a final decision.
I have respectfully asked that council defer the public hearing date until early spring when most residents who winter south have returned
Diana Smith
Summerland