Dear editor,
Over the years, since 1971, we have on the whole been happy here. We’ve raised our children and have tried to be good citizens by volunteering where needed. There have been many changes. Some more, to my mind, greatly needed. The 17th Street bridge comes to mind, which was sorely needed and we are badly in need of another crossing, for vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians.
I have written many letters when I felt that something needed to be brought to the attention of our council. On the whole, I have been complimented on the letters. Unfortunately, when I suggested they also write letters, they chose to be the silent majority. Eventually, I also stopped writing. I watched our city taxes accelerate at more than the cost of living every year for things that were hardly necessary while our streets look more like cobblestones and the potholes get bigger. I contacted our city works several times about our sidewalk, which is cracked and broken. They came and looked at it twice and eventually spray-painted the broken edges with red paint and never came back.I have an elderly neighbor who uses a walker, and walks on the street to avoid falling.
Regarding the sixth street all-purpose bridge, I think it is high time that our leaders, both city and regional district stopped catering to special interest groups. We have put in miles of bicycle paths that few use, and most cyclists who do use them have either no knowledge of traffic laws or choose to ignore them. They are not obliged to have a licence or, to my knowledge, a bell to signal pedestrians that they are being overtaken, when I am required to have an operating horn on my car. We do not need an all-purpose bridge on Sixth Street or anywhere else! Use the six million dollars to update our infrastructure which seems to be a long way down the list of priorities.
Bernie Guyader,
Courtenay