Editor:
My wife and I are original owners in the Woodward Landing townhouse complex, one of 50 residents that are to be abutting the final build-out at Captain's Cove.
As Peter Finch put it so succinctly in the 1972 movie Network, we are mad as hell and are not going to take it anymore. As it happens, that is also the year we bought our first house and since then have always considered it to be our biggest investment, as have most of our 49 neighbors.
We are not young anymore and have no desire to get into a protracted legal battle to challenge the decision that was made to allow development to go ahead at the ridiculously high density level suggested on the build-out proposal.
I will, however, make it quite clear that Delta council has misrepresented our considerable investment as a community of 50 residents at Woodward Landing. Cumulatively we have spent approximately $1.2 million since 2006 in taxes to the municipality.
I thought this would have at least given us a seat and a voice at the third reading, but I was wrong. Council's choice was to orchestrate an event that turned out to be a complete sham; we were treated like a bunch of errant school children by certain members of council. Shame on them.
When Polygon marketed Woodward Landing in 2005 and 2006, we were drawn in by the sales pitch. The future was bright, development of the remaining land would have a form and function similar to Chesapeake Landing, slightly higher density than Woodward Landing, some commercial retail, a hotel and a retirement residence.
This was backed up by a drawing that adorned our amenity building wall in late 2007. It was unique because it showed the boatyard relocated to the centre of the property and the small commercial running toward the east. On the far eastern end was the retirement home, the hotel, clubhouse and new pub to be in the middle.
It disappeared from the wall in late 2010 and has not been seen since.
The so-called 1996 drawing that adorned council chambers on the 15th of July showing 600-plus stacked townhouse and the hotel did not exist in 2006 when we did our research prior to purchase. We came from an area that is now called Morgan Crossing and we were not planning to live with density levels that completely destroy a community again.
So here we are seven years on, over $32 million of our money invested in Woodward Landing went directly to Polygon, $1.2 million to the municipality and what do we have?
The Community Comment by Steve Graham in the Aug. 23rd Optimist was right on. We do indeed get what we vote for, however, we do not get what we pay for.
We have few rights in today's society and actions such as the lack of council oversight into our needs as a community diminish those rights even more.
We are mad as hell and we can do something about it: defer taxes, forensic searches to find old drawings and validate new ones, class action lawsuits for false advertising. Ever wonder why there is insurrection and trouble in the world? We need look no further than those who make decisions right here in our own back yard.
Nella and Rodney Deakin
