The following letter was sent to members of NOTL council. A copy was submitted to The Lake Report for publication.
People are angry. In fact, they are very angry and frustrated that their voices are not being heard by their representatives (“NOTL protests town council,” The Lake Report, Aug. 1).
There has even been a call for certain members of council to resign since they no longer have the confidence of many of the people who elected them.
They are also accused of breaking election promises. As The Lake Report comment in its editorial in the same edition, (“Anger, division and the future of NOTL,“), it is very unusual for NOTL residents to take to the streets in protest of council.
This simply shows the depth and dimension of an issue that is very important to the residents of Old Town and others in NOTL — and should not be ignored.
The heritage, history and look of Old Town are fundamental and extremely important issues to its residents. Old Town is unique and should be protected by council.
Common sense says that Parliament Oak is a special and unique case and resident input should be seriously considered before any decision is made by council.
It should not be left solely up to those elected. However, this was not done.
The level of residents’ anger at the time of protest led to some displays of offensive conduct, according to the mayor.
While such conduct is not condoned, this is not surprising since many see the conduct of council and its refusal to listen to the residents on this important and special issue as even more offensive.
Derek Collins
NOTL
