Dear editor,
John Van Egmond (Record, June 17) is understandably upset that our community was panned as a tourist destination in a recent issue of BCAA Westworld magazine.
The Comox Valley does have much to offer visitors and is certainly more than "a tangle of suburbs and box stores." But I can also understand how someone arriving in Courtenay might get the wrong impression and be inclined to keep on driving.
Imagine you are a first-time visitor to Vancouver Island and you choose to drive north on the scenic coastal highway. You might be tempted to stop for the magnificent oceanside view at Qualicum Beach Park or take time to explore the little communities at Qualicum Bay, Bowser, Fanny Bay and Union Bay.
But upon arriving in Courtenay you are immediately confronted with the Walmart mall. This is followed by more malls and strip development until you arrive at a congested intersection at the 17th Street Bridge.
Here you get your first and last glimpse of the Courtenay River before your view is blocked out by car dealerships and industrial sites that line the riverside. You then encounter more box stores and malls until you turn up Mission Hill and the commercial strip development finally fades away as you leave Courtenay.
Many of our planning mistakes were made in the past decades, but inexplicably we continue to compound our errors. Commercial development continues to grow on our riverside, the construction of a gas station has been approved on our beautiful estuary and I don't think coal mines will do much to enhance our appeal to tourists.
As Mr.Van Egmond has pointed out, the Comox Valley has numerous established attractions. Recently our municipal and regional governments and service clubs have done a remarkable job developing sites, walkways and trails that take advantage of the natural beauty of the Comox Valley.
But in the "first impression" department we have blown it.
It is the job of a travel magazine to point out attractions that might not be obvious to the uninformed visitor. Perhaps the Westworld article should have been titled, "There are hidden treasures waiting to be discovered behind the Comox Valley's ugly facade."
Erik Taynen,
Courtenay