Editor:
Re: Four Winds proposal rejected, April 11
Delta council’s rejection of the Southlands/Four Winds zoning amendments sends the wrong message and will put a chill on local businesses bringing forward new ideas that have strong public support.
In this case, Delta staff reported in January that 77 per cent of written comments from the public were in support of the project. To illustrate the concern, why did it take until the third reading of the amendments for the mayor to express his anger that Century Group would even dare to mention Four Winds on its website before anything was approved? Couldn’t he have simply asked them to remove it earlier?
More importantly, why did it take so long for the mayor and the dissenting councillors to conclude that it did not fit the original plan for Southlands? Surely they could have raised these fundamental issues at or before the Jan. 28 council meeting when they approved the proposal going to public hearing.
If council had acted more proactively, is it not possible the applicant could have gone back to revise its proposal to get past these issues? After reading the mayor’s reasons for his no vote, it stretches credulity to believe that he only arrived at his conclusions following the public hearing.
How much has this cost the applicants in lost time and money to have the rug pulled out at the last minute? What was the point of unnecessarily roiling up the Boundary Bay community with a public hearing?
Finally, looking at the big picture, why is a casino acceptable for our community while a local business proposing a project with a direct connection to our valuable farmland is not? Councillors should address these questions so we can determine whether they understand the vital role they play in encouraging local businesses to continue to propose unique concepts which can help build a more vibrant community.
Simon Lamb
