Strictly speaking, the Pool Pay it Forward and its sister group Making Waves – Yes For Progress are both right.
A vote in favour of the town’s and now the county’s borrowing bylaw by residents is a positive vote. Using the same logic, a vote against either one of the bylaws would be a negative vote.
That is if you go by the strict definition of positive and negative.
However, in the real world it is rarely that simple.
On June 24, Chuck Hambling and a group of citizens submitted a petition to Barrhead town council to delay passing the town’s debenture borrowing bylaw so council and residents would have to take a second look at the aquatic centre project.
A month later the petition was declared successful and so far three citizen led groups have come out of the woodwork, each hoping to convince area residents that their view on the aquatic centre is the right one.
Two of the citizen groups, Pool Pay it Forward and Making Waves – Yes For Progress, believe the aquatic centre as it is currently proposed, is the right decision for Barrhead area residents. The other group, which doesn’t have a name yet, believes that while a pool is needed for Barrhead, it’s time to go back to the drawing board and come up with a plan that not only fits the needs of its residents, but is also one that they can afford.
The two pro-pool groups say they want to move forward with the aquatic centre project by keeping the discussion on a positive note and by trying to dispel objections without rehashing past discussions.
A noble goal, but one that is perhaps impossible to achieve. Like many issues it is often difficult to have a full and accurate debate without bringing up past issues.
In the real world, just because a person, or a group doesn’t support something it doesn’t mean they are being negative. For example, take the people who signed the petition or the people in Vincent Wiese’s group. In both cases, these are people who believe by not supporting the pool as it is proposed and by not voting for the two borrowing bylaws they have the best interests of themselves, and their community.
They are not against progress or a pool, but are concerned about the potential effects building such a facility will have on their community.
As people who not only work in the community of Barrhead, the reporters of the Leader are constantly amazed by the passion and love residents have for their community. No matter what side of the pool, amalgamation or some yet to be named issue the residents of Barrhead are on, it’s important to remember that everyone is doing what they think is best for the community as a whole. And that no matter how you look at it’s a positive.
