I am a homeowner on 20th Street, and lately every time I pick up the newspaper, I am infuriated more and more over what I am reading in the letters column. I walk this street every day with my children. Every day my oldest walks this street to school. The landscaping is so beautiful and the street overall looks 100 per cent better.
I believe it is improving our neighbourhood as well. Property values are going up and residents are encouraged to look after the curb appeal of their homes. And the last time I walked down the street, I don’t think I saw a single house that did not have a parking spot on their property.
So which leads me to why I am so infuriated when I read the paper. Where is all of this criticism coming from? What, because people can’t park on the street? I dislike when people park in front of my house as when I back out of my driveway, my vision is impaired. And the last letter I read, they couldn’t find anything else to complain about other than children playing with the landscaping and children skateboarding… really? Was it that long ago, that you forgot what it was like to actually be a child? Have a little patience please.
I am now finding out that if all this negativity keeps up, city hall may not continue the project. Where were all of you complainers when city hall had its open house planning committee regarding the 20th Street upgrade? My family and I attended and if I remember correctly, everyone was impressed and supportive of the project. It seems to me that the only people complaining about this upgrade are people that are not getting any use out of it.
So what you if can’t park on the street? So what if there are more children encouraged to be outside playing on your street? Wasn’t that the original plan? I would like to hear from the people like ourselves, young families, that are going to be here in this neighbourhood for the next 50 years.
My children are going to grow up in this neighborhood and I welcome any upgrade the city invests here. I congratulate the City of Vernon for all of its initiatives to make our city a better place, such as the new greenway and the new library.
As a young family, we couldn’t be happier with the changes. I would like to see more sidewalks and landscaping in the city neighbourhoods, especially sidewalks on both sides of the roads (such as in front of Girouard Park), as this is a huge hazard for our children. Why wouldn’t you want to make our city a greener, more livable and safe community for our children?
I hope that when city hall reads all of this criticism, they remember, that some are so resistant to change that even changes for the better, are hard to handle.
I applaud and support the city of Vernon. We are headed in the right direction to take our community to a greener, more sustainable future.
B. Canabe, Vernon
