Knowledge is power. I firmly believe this statement. The public forums that have been held concerning important issues before our city council have been informative and valuable to me as a taxpayer. It has helped me see all sides of the issues, and we know how a different perspective can change everything.
I would like to believe that the council supports the taxpayers, and values their opinions and will make the best decisions for the community. There was a public admission by the mayor that they did not properly inform the public with regards to the borrowing for the Carmi water upgrades, leading us to believe they would do better in the future. So why is there so little information on the request for proposal for the Penticton Community Centre and recreation services available to the public?
Apparently you can access it on line but only if you register and get a password. This whole issue deserves equal time in a public forum. This council needs to hear from the taxpayer before they accept any proposal and start to negotiate with a private company. How did our recreation services suddenly become a part of this proposal? (That you can see on line.) If negotiations start does this all become confidential?
I feel frustrated and I wonder how many more citizens of this city feel the same as I do right now? As I ponder all of this I do begin to wonder how this all happened in the first place? Didn’t anyone have any idea of our financial status when the grant was applied for? If so and the intent was all along to privatize the facility, I wonder if this council would have been faced with a reverse referendum to put a stop to the borrowing? All of this leads me back to my original statement and maybe that is exactly the problem here.
Willie Sander
Penticton