On Sept.14, 2004 an important meeting will take place at the Brennan Park Recreation Centre.The seven people on Squamish council will sit in front of their constituents and listen as citizens tell them how they feel about a zoning bylaw amendment for the Squamish Business Park.
The public hearing planned for Sept. 14 is the most important one so far for this council. The meeting will have a huge impact on the future of the business park, the community as a whole and the entire Sea to Sky region because the public hearing is the final piece of the puzzle for the local lawmakers as they make their decision.
Many residents feel that the amendment will go through and voicing opposition is pointless.There's good reason to think this vote is a slam dunk because the District of Squamish sent many positive signals to Wal-Mart by put out the word that it was interested in exploring the possibility of selling land to a big box retailer and then negotiating a conditional land deal. Also, a recognized polling firm determined a few years ago that a strong majority of citizens support a wider variety of retail choices in Squamish and that determination was followed by a referendum that confirmed the firm's findings.
Yes, some found the question confusing but the bottom line is that the result of the vote indicated support for a big box store.
Those arguments are valid but at the end of the day, the zoning bylaw amendment that council is considering now has to stand on its own merits and if the community truly indicates that it doesn't want the change being proposed then council has to consider that.
The anti-Wal-Mart forces are loud and those who support Wal-Mart will be drowned out unless the soft supporters speak up.
This council needs to hear from as many citizens as possible between now and Sept. 14 so the right decision is made. By hearing from a wide cross section of citizens, each of the seven lawmakers can more accurately determine how they will vote.
If you have any feeling whatsoever either way on the Wal-Mart, don't hesitate to either attend the meeting and be prepared to speak or put your thoughts to pen, keyboard or typewriter. Your speech or letter doesn't have to be long and it doesn't have to dwell deep into your reasoning. Most importantly it has to say whether you are for or against the motion before council.
Like at election time where every vote counts, in this case every opinion counts.
