To the Editor,
Re: Linley Valley worth saving for future, Letters, March 10.
Joanne Jonas has responded to my questioning the value of the western portion of Linley Valley with several inaccurate statements.
Regarding her assumption that all I’m only “interested in is the money”, she is correct in that I am concerned with how city council spends our taxes.
Given the number of excellent parks in the area, this property does not warrant a large expenditure of money we do not have.
I note that in the original letter from Sue Oakley, she wanted the city to place a moratorium on development before even beginning negotiation, which would be unfair and an abuse of power, rendering the property value far less than current zoning.
The ‘sawdust piles’ to which Jonas refers to are clean fill which will be used in landscaping of the property.
Her claim that a paved road runs “directly through the pond” is also completely untrue. Neither the road nor the pedestrian pathway approaches close to the pond areas.
In fact, the developer has installed a lovely cedar fence with ‘environmentally sensitive area’ signs posted along the length.
As for beaver and songbirds, the beaver remain undisturbed and I awake most mornings to the sound of ducks and Canada geese.
Like Jonas, I walk the trails of western Linley Valley nearly every day. Over privately owned land, I might add.
But I don’t see myself as “giving it away”, because it’s not mine, and I make no moral claim to that which others own.
Randy O’Donnell
Nanaimo
