The following is my view from talking with friends and people I have met.
“To this end, the Task Force engaged the business community through direct discussions and a ‘Town Hall’ held on April 5, 2018, at the Schubert Centre, at which approximately 160 business owners and stakeholders attended.”
This is a quote from the preamble of Darrin Taylor on the report he presented to the council on July 9 which I had difficulty obtaining, as I thought it would be on the city website but it was not. Mr. Taylor and his group are basing this report on a very old 1982 Broken Windows idea. But the biggest mistake is that is not about Vernon in 2018, instead, it’s about people from a different time and place.
Now someone please tell me where the words “general public” appear in this or any other new stories regarding this task force? I am not a stakeholder as I have always be called a member of the general public for all other meetings. From what I have heard from business persons and the general public, the so called public forum was an invite to all the business community and the stakeholders (agencies or groups associated with the outcome or input). The council chambers only had a few of the general public at the meeting and they did not get air time.
“A sense of lawlessness and urban decay in Vernon” also appeared in his preamble. This is not the old west and I do not consider this statement correct or accurate. We have the law in this town and the city does its best to make it a pleasant place to live. Yes, all municipalities we have problem areas.
Then Mr Taylor goes into eight major points and except for three items, these problems have plagued major cities since I was a police officer in Saskatoon 50-plus years ago. Municipalities have been fighting the battle and have never won and never will, because you cannot please all the people all the time. You must listen to all the people.
Now the task force wishes for us taxpayers — and yes I do realize that business pays taxes too but I would like to see what group pays the most — to increase our taxes to support them. Maybe the downtown business owners should hire several of the people they are complaining about to do they jobs they will do or ask their staff to do or pay their staff to come in early to do. But then they would have to talk with them and see if they wanted to work.
It just seems that it is business owners on council looking after the business community and ignoring the general voting public.
Mr Taylor, as many on the council at present seem to forget, to arrive at an answer you must talk and listen to all the people, not just those who think like you but the regular people not speciality groups or persons.
I also hope that those on council who agree with him are shown what we think of them at the polls, our democratic place to make a change.
Garry Haas