Dear Editor.
Once again I write with concern as a taxpayer and resident of Woodlands County. Let me be clear that I am not opposed to the gravel extraction in our area. I am very aware that there will be development as we are rich in that resource in this county. We should not oppose development but should be in control of how it happens.
I have watched the process unfold and really begin to question once again whether we are following the procedures that would bring this development to fruition to have the best result possible. Or is it merely to follow a process because it is there? I submit that it is the latter. At this point I know that I have followed the whole process very closely and feel that even though I was receiving all the information as it became available it just created more confusion. The open house on the project allowed me to make some very interesting observations.
The first one was that the planner did put together a very good document with the information that he had. The unfortunate part was that there was a lot of information missing that will cost the taxpayers of this community dearly if not included in the plan. Land use planning is one of the most complex and important exercises that a municipality has been legislated to be responsible for. I think council needs to be reminded that it is not what you want that is important.
It is needs of the people that you represent that should be important. I would even submit that you should not even listen to only my opinion but have open houses that encourage open discussion where we do not have neighbour pitted against neighbour but have all the issues on the table to build some consensus. This is not happening because not all information has been shared or respected.
I felt that the open house showed that the area structure plan only dealt with Pride Valley, not all proposed development in the area. This is very poor planning because it leaves out areas where there can be synergy and we stand to lose opportunities to do it right.
I also found it interesting that the developer was influencing the committee. I would suggest that unless you live and vote in this community the only time you would be allowed to participate would be in an invited consultation capacity. There are many pieces missing yet and I would encourage council to have a workshop or two that would not be there to discuss for or against, but to brainstorm the issues and propose the best possible solutions to those issues.
For those of us who have exercised our democratic responsibility to the process, we have been marginalized to this point. If we cannot encourage a positive end result with some kind of consensus, then the legacy of this council will have been in its ability to divide a community. For those of you who have exercised your democratic responsibility if there is a failure to bring about a successful end result it’s not your failure but that of our leadership.
Respectfully yours,
Peter Kuelken
