Are The Sleeping 'Masses' Waking Up?

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Q: What Do These 'Decisions' Have In Common?

Low Barrier Housing Projects
New City Hall Annex
Water Filtration Plant
Pioneer Forest Zoning
Nanaimo Inner Harbour Lease
Colliery Dams Removal

A: These are all decisions that elected and non-elected officials have undertaken which have serious long range consequence for all Nanaimo taxpayers and have been done without regard for public opinion or input.

For the most part all of these decisions have been made by a handful of elected and non-elected officials behind veils of secrecy because for the most part the 'masses' have been negligent in their civic duty to continuously make themselves aware of how these people have been 'doing business' for years.

There seems to be a prevailing attitude that as long as we can pay our tax increases we really don't care what they are spending the money on, after all 'they' are all the same and we expect our taxes to keep going up. Another attitude is a lack of caring or concern when a decision has no direct effect on us. For example, if we were unaffected by the original decision to 'shoe-horn' over 100 low barrier housing units into the Quarterway School area, if it didn't effect us, we simply didn't care.

For the most part, most of us are simply far too busy doing OUR jobs and taking care of OUR finances to take the time and effort required to pay much attention to what elected and non-elected officials are deciding everyday, which will affect OUR finances for decades!

Right now, the folks directly affected with the loss of the lakes in Colliery Park are waking up to how this decision was made behind closed doors and without any public input and they are rightly upset with the demonstrated arrogance that exists among city hall staff and city council and how little regard they have for public input, regardless of how they claim to have this desire to be so open and transparent.