It’s almost a guarantee that whatever you plan to do in a residential neighbourhood, there will be someone opposing it.
It’s commonly known as NIMBY, as in ‘That’s a nice idea, but Not In My Backyard.’
In some cases, the opposition is warranted, like an application for a variance that would fundamentally change the nature of someone’s property, like being thrown into permanent shade by an overlarge apartment building being built on a neighbouring property or a parking garage that would funnel exhaust fumes into a neighbours house.
Sadly, all too often, people only engage with politics or city hall when they are opposed to something that affects them personally. The larger picture of what is good for the community is rarely looked at.
That’s the case with a proposition to convert a home on Yorkton Avenue into a daycare for up to 16 children. And we use the term convert loosely, since the proponent has repeatedly said she has no plans to make major changes to the existing structure, inside or out.
Nevertheless, the neighbourhood is up in arms about the proposal. It is quite jarring to hear a senior citizen, doubtless a grandparent themselves, say that they don’t want to be looking at children playing. Or hearing them, for that matter, since increased noise is another of their concerns.
Daycare spaces are badly needed in the community. Neighbourhood concerns should be taken into account and given an honest evaluation by Penticton city council when the daycare proposal comes before it again on April 7. But council also needs to evaluate what is best for the community as a whole, and whether the neighbourhood concerns are based on fact or fear of change and false rumours being spread through the group.
Change is hard to deal with, but minor change or major, it is also inevitable. The goal of any neighbourhood should not be to avoid change at all costs, but to work with it and weave it into the fabric of community.