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Vernon Morning Star

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My name is Leon Maksymchuk, and I’m the gentleman who is trying to rezone 4.7 acres on Star Road to be used for the extended care facility. As said in the Morning Star on Nov. 11, “Care facility shot down.”

It is quite a shame that the council of NORD values empty land and a few apple trees more than our seniors.

I am royally upset and I just can’t believe it. I am sick and tired of having to fight to do a good thing. Some people say I am doing this for financial gain.

Well I currently live in Alberta and I have quite a successful building company, so undertaking an assisted care facility in Vernon would be a real inconvenience.

Not to mention that there are definitely easier ways to meet financial gain. Besides, I’m trying to make this affordable, country living type units.

It’s very interesting that the surrounding opposing neighbours are against the country setting being turned into more urbanized appearance, when they live in a urban zone themselves. I originally grew up in Vernon and lived there for 31 years and I love Vernon just as much as everyone else. How many more years must we go before we realize that we should have dealt with this a very long time ago.

Seniors, not only should have the right to choose where to live ... they do have the right ... And this is the way it has to be. NORD said there are other solutions.

Well we are running out of old swamp sites and non-fertile land to build on.

And for that matter, what’s wrong with giving the seniors a nice orchard type setting to live in? Some people don’t like living in the city. I know I don’t ...

It was also said that building a facility on this property would put pressure on the water supply. I’m sure glad that the urban neighbours brought this up. This land has roughly three to five inches of top soil and the rest is all gravel. The amount of water needed to water these trees is far greater than if this were made into an assisted care facility.

How much water do seniors use?

I am just a builder trying to do what needs to be done. I am not a politician. If you know a way to help with this problem, please do so.

Leon Maksymchuk

Respect?

As a child growing up in Vernon I was taught respect at a young age.

Respect for your elders, other people's property and that everyone had a right to an opinion and the right to voice it.

As a parent, I am teaching my children the same values, as are their teachers at school.

Recently, I took my eight-year-old daughter to a meeting at Coldstream Elementary School regarding the removal of land in Coldstream from the ALR.

There, she received a lesson, albeit a negative one. 

When the kids in their sports uniforms walked in they were booed and told "Go home to Vernon" and "You don't belong here – you're not a taxpayer."

To top it all off, when people talked in favour of the sports complex some felt it was necessary to interrupt loudly, only stopping when there was someone speaking in opposition to the complex.

Where was the respect for those kids? Where was the respect for people when they voice a differing opinion? 

The last lesson was on Monday when she saw the vandalized signs. Now, since the publicity about the vandalism, instead of being destroyed and defaced the signs are just disappearing. So, thanks for the lesson – how not to show respect for others, their property and opinions.

Barb Fletcher