I am trying to imagine what the First Nations people thought of what is now known as Clover Point back in 1821, and hundreds if not thousands of years before that. Did they prepare and eat meals there? Did they gather their elders, babies, and disabled among them, and haul them down to the water’s edge to witness Mother Nature’s fury? No, in all likelihood, most probably avoided Clover Point on typical days, because being exposed to the often-harsh elements there wasn’t a journey worth partaking in.
So, here we are in 2021. A paved route and dozens of parking spots for automobiles was established at Clover Point in 1956. Literally millions of visits to Clover Point by automobile have taken place in the last 65 years. What is the problem here?
Mayor Lisa Helps, and many who make up the current Victoria city council, demonstrably hate automobiles, plain and simple. Imagine what they would do if they had control over Saxe Point, Esquimalt Lagoon, Oak Bay Marina, Cattle Point, Mount Tolmie, and Mount Douglas.
A few years ago, Saanich decided to prohibit automobile access to the top of Mount Douglas before the noon hour so that the healthy and fit among us could make that road an exclusive hiking and cycling trail, at least for the first half of the day. There is a cheap compromise to be had at Clover Point, and Lisa Helps and council should look to the Mount Douglas model that Saanich has successfully implemented for guidance.
Trevor Amon
Victoria
