Plan Does Not Include Colliery Park Lakes

How Can Harewood Neighbourhood Plan

Not Include Colliery Park Lakes Dam?

That is the question the Colliery Dam Preservation Society intends to ask this Saturday. They are organizing a rally which will begin in the parking lot of Colliery Park and march it's way to University Village (Harewood Mall) where they intend to let city officials know that any Harewood Neighbourhood Plan that does not include the lakes in Colliery Park is no plan at all.

If you would like to add your voice of support you should be at the parking lot before 10:00 am Saturday morning (April 13). If walking from there to the mall is too much, you can always join them at the mall.

It seems that Colliery Park Lakes Dams were singled out for special treatment by city officials, in that they have applied a crazy construction standard and are not subjecting Westwood Lake dam to the same standards. This is yet another closed door decision this city administration needs to bring out into the open for public scrutiny, unless of course they fear having the public know how they came to this decision.

One thing that has marked Mayor Ruttan's administration are in-camera meetings, which have their place but seem to be being abused by Mayor Ruttan at the urging of city manager Mr. Kenning. In particular the meeting that saw the decision to destroy the Colliery Dams was made in secret, where there seems no proper reason for secrecy. What are they hiding anyway?

It was the same process that brought us a $16,000,000 annex when a $4,000,000 reno would have dealt with seismic issues at the old annex. The old annex had an assessed value of several million dollars, but under this administrations direction it has been given away for $1.00.

Maybe it is time to consider a recall petition before this council can give anything else away, remember it was only public outcry that halted Mayor Ruttan from giving away the farm with a reported 50 year deal to lease the conference centre for $1.00/yr. The brain trust at city hall likely thought that was a good idea also, being the shrewd business types they are.