With regard to the recent information coming to light that the Ministry of Transportation has not approved the proposal by the city to relocate the visitor information centre, I think that all concerned citizens should focus their efforts towards the MoT with the aim of denying the application, the sooner the better.
Not being a citizen of Vernon, I don’t get to vote anybody in or out in your little kingdom. However, from an outsiders, viewpoint, the proposal is ludicrous as everybody knows the flow of tourist traffic comes from one place in the summer, Alberta, and is heading south. You gotta catch them before they leave for K-town.
By the time the tourists are heading north, they pretty much have throttles pinned to the floor to make it home to work. Your tourism manager’s statement, notwithstanding, I have never seen anyone turn left trying to reach the Watson House booth because once they are through the traffic in Vernon, they are gone.
I have seen, however, many tourists using the perfectly adequate north booth with rigs both large and small.
The proposal from your city staff is designed for failure because it fails to take into account that these tourists want access to the water first of all, not shopping in the downtown area.
Anyway, just my two cents from Armstrong. I for sure don’t want to be sitting in long lineups this summer as people try to turn left from an already taxed main artery.
Dudley Price
Armstrong
