Readers Write -- Comments on the referendum.

Allow me to comment on the referendum result in the Coldstreamer Blog. Thanks again, keep up the good work safeguarding our community.

The collective voice of Coldstream has spoken and it was a resounding "NO"to removing the Spicer block from the ALR.

The negative verdict is simply a bottom line to a number of other embedded issues and it would pay us to take heed of some of the other factors implied in the final outcome.

Firstly, the parks division of GVSC and the Coldstream mayors office lack credibility. Two out of three voters didn’t place their trust in and disagreed with, the people that recommended this proposal. Voters had been duped before by Coldstream counsel and/or GVSC, on the building of City hall, sewer, Coldstream meadows, water treatment plant, etc.

There was a lack of transparency by the GVSC, a lack of public input in the plan before this proposal was advanced and an apparent conflict with the existing community plan to respect the integrity of ALR lands within Coldstream . Then, in addition, the manner in which it was advanced to the public was duplicitous and disingenuous from start to finish.

There was a public relations campaign undertaken by the Sports lobby to sell the project as the only suitable location in greater Vernon for a Sports complex, that more playing fields were needed for the sake of our children when the facts showed the opposite, that the proposal was actually a "park" not a parking lot with tourist friendly facilities and the unnecessary condition 'if you want the grey canal walking trail it must also come with the sports complex'.

The fact that ‘Funtastic’ was a major backer of this proposal was the final fatal flaw because the proposal then appeared to become an economic regional development project intended to draw on the commercial attractiveness of Sports Tourism, baseball tournaments and the like. The public reaction was understandably ,"Not in my backyard"! Moreover many residents would prefer to keep Coldstream and Lavington a rural or semi-rural community, a Sports Complex would be the thin end of the wedge, bringing an end to rural ‘life, as we know it’.

Finally, the public verdict affirms the value of ALR [agricultural] lands in our community. Coldstream residents endorse the goal of the ALR and reject economic development at the expense of our primary agricultural land base. Politicians and bureaucrats would be wise to take note and act accordingly in the future!

Peter Peto

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