Dear Mayor Ives, councillors of Comox, Brendan Kelly, members of the Sewage Commission and more,
I am a resident of Black Creek but visit Comox regularly to enjoy the views and trails. Once a month I also visit Ruth Masters and one of her favourite places to go is Macdonald Wood. Ruth is quite disabled now and can’t walk far, though she resists a wheelchair. So, we drive to the beach access on Croteau Road and slowly pick our way down to the water and along the Rotary boardwalk to a park bench. We sit there and reminisce, marvelling at the view and remembering how Macdonald Wood was the hard-won prize of heroic public effort, (Ruth being one of the elderly ladies who stood in front of the chainsaws to save the park all those years ago). There is a peaceful ambiance to the spot which is healing to the spirit and we get cheery hellos from all the other users of the popular trail.
And so I am dismayed at the proposal to site a large sewage forcemain pump station at Croteau Road beach access. Not only would the structure limit access to the beach but it would also negatively impact those values which make the park so enjoyable to so many: the sense of escape from the bustle of town, the peace and quiet, the feeling of being ‘away from it all’. The noise from a pump station is inescapable, the possibility of odour is a serious concern. Given the level of controversy surrounding this unexpected, out of the blue, siting proposal, I urge the members of the Sewage Commission to reconsider.
Please understand and respect the ever-increasing importance of places which offer respite to the soul; seek a more appropriate place for the pump station.
Yours sincerely,
Amanda Vaughan,
Black Creek