To the Editor,
The arena, swimming pool and McLean Mill all lose money and we have lost past industrial base.
Most retirees’ pensions (unlike government) are not indexed. Is it reasonable that we should stabilize city costs or do we have faith (which is the absence of evidence) that tourism will grow to be an industry to employ us and pay taxes?
McLean Mill, our last adopted dependant was supposed to be self-sufficient $14,000,000 ago. Richard Berg once calculated the mill’s welfare subsidy amounted to $20/visitor.
Thunder Bay’s resurrection of old Fort William’s fur trading post has a stable population of more than 100,000 to support it but other towns’ tourism dreams become nightmares.
Businesspeople must do feasibility studies to get bank loans and try to limit cost to compete and profit.
Government lacks limitations and that’s why public service wages and benefits often exceed private sector.
If McLean Mill is a make work project, is it cheaper to pay workers severance and direct tourists to our other aging mills (Somass and APD) that won’t update because they fear trees will all be exported?
China buys B.C. alder and sells us alder cupboards. Neither alder nor maple are deemed profitable to log and are left to fertilize the trees that we export.
Will the minority force the majority to support this errant ward of Port Alberni to infinity or until it breaks us?
Do we have to draw up a Statute of Limitations Act or will city council give us a referendum to get this monkey off our back?
RJ Frankow,
Port Albern
