LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
- November 04, 2008
Dear Editor;
It was good to see so many people turn out for the two all-candidate meetings hosted by the Chamber of Commerce this last week! It makes me feel that there are many people keenly interested in the direction that the Town of Princeton will take in the near future. Thanks to all the candidates who so bravely participated and to the Chamber of Commerce who facilitated the events.
Turnout Province-wide for municipal elections has traditionally been very small. That means that a very small number of people choose municipal decision makers who vote on issues which affect many important areas of our lives. Some of those issues include a healthful environment, affordable housing, support for local food producers in the form of farmer's markets and community gardens and greenhouses, providing accessibility to all facets of community life for people with disabilities and to youth and ethnic and culturally diverse groups.
Transportation is another issue municipal government deals with and impacts. Community planning, physical, recreational and social are also municipal areas of concern. You can see how important your vote in the November 15th election is, if any of these issues impacts your life.
The most important thing you can do for your community is to vote! In a time of rapid change in BC, local government is becoming more important than ever. Local governments are struggling to understand their role in the face of all this change, and are finding ways of being at the forefront of social, economic and environmental change. I'm not going to tell you who you should vote for, but I am voting for those candidates I believe will put in the hard work required to come up with creative solutions that address our community's issues. I also want to vote for candidates who are committed to including the community in planning and building a sustainable and just living environment.
I was only able to attend one of the two all-candidates meetings, and was not able to hear all of the responses to the questions in the echoing hall at the secondary school. So how do I know who to vote for? By reading the local papers, by reading the campaign literature provided by the candidates, and by engaging the candidates directly. It's a small town and I know where to find these people. In the coming days, I will be phoning and e-mailing candidates to ask the questions dearest to my heart. If they want my vote, they had better start out by being accessible.
Sincerely,
Ann Hughes, Princeton
