Re: Referendum

The following is being posted with the consent of the original author ...

Playing politics has never been for the faint of heart. Those who participate are much like the referees in sport. With two sides on any given issue, there will always be people upset with the outcome. An impartial referee often upsets both sides with a decision based on the facts that he or she sees, not on emotion.

The referendum question has only one logical outcome as most people would decline giving an okay to the unknown. It would be then logical to accept that the person representing that referendum wants that outcome.

A sports complex would benefit all people of all ages in our community. Now people need to leave our community and travel to where this is offered. The arena fulfills only one outlet and does this poorly. The changerooms are so small, you have to leave the room to change your mind. Parking is minimal, the stands and warming areas too small and certainly not comfortable.Now when one of our local teams are in the all Ontario finals, the canteen was so understocked, parents from both teams had to go elsewhere to get drinks for their kids. Nestea and carbonated soda was all that was available in a near empty cooler and the vending machines were not working or empty. The staff at the arena are hard working but can only offer what is there, yet they are the front line for all complaints people give them.

Missing from the referendum is the question of whether or not you support the spending of $10 million dollars on shipping water to Frazerville. Apparently spending of this nature and the impact on our tax bills isn`t any worry. The constuction of this and the impact on the route and long term effects are nothing to worry about. Man`s arrogance is astounding, with experts telling us not to worry, yet they can`t agree on why the great lakes water levels were going down , they assure that the water tables here will have no lasting impacts.

Many of us have children who play soccer and baseball at Maple Leaf park on land that I believe was donated by Maple Feeds to the north of the park. The rates have increased by over 40% this year based on a study of like sized municipalities and what they charge for these services. Whatever money spent on this fact finding resulted in our rates going up, based on what other municipalities charge. The only fact missing was comparing us to other municipalities with a casino. Part of the reason we allowed the casino was the financial benefits it provided and if we are paying the rates of other municipalities, why?

There is the opportunity of the former jail grounds. Rumour has it that the grounds are contaminated (maybe as a result from making the licence plates?). It will be costly to fix but why isn`t any effort to correct this problem being made. With all the infrastructure money being offered, would it not make sense to spend some effort in getting federal money to clean this up and then maybe try to turn this property into a community center? It is in walking distance of town , has parking for those who drive and would provide jobs for both full time and part time positions. It would seem cleaning up a toxic site and turning it into a community center would be a great photo op for many levels of government, aside from the benefits we would enjoy.

Some of my information could be wrong and if so the basic message should not be lost. If we are going to start governing by referendums and innuendoes rather than by elected officials, then make sure the referendum questions are fairly worded so we can make informed decisions. I certainly plan to voice my opinion April 6th and most importantly, October 25th

Derek Baker

Bailieboro