Open letter to residents
Beach volleyball
Letter to Editor-Lakeshore Advnce
It was proud moment for me last week to be asked to participate with two other members of our community, in a bid to persuade our Council to alter its stance on the use of our Grand Bend beach. As many of you know, an independent entity calling itself PVB Enterprises struck a deal with Council to use a section of our beach as a venue for its summer volleyball schools and tournaments with an open-ended time frame from May – mid September, for the next 10 summers.
This deal was struck (to a large extent in secrecy behind closed doors) with no concerted effort on the part of council or PVB to get a timely "feel for public opinion."
In an effort to pinpoint and get "a fix" on their actions, Council was asked among other points, to address 3 specific items in the agreement.
How they determined that "this was in the public interest?"
What the clause, "PVB is to refrain from interfering with the enjoyment of the beach" means in practice?
That "PVB will hold and pay for a $2 million liability insurance policy to be in place at the signing of the contract."
The response of councillors? Mute silence. We were courteously thanked for our input, dismissed and the "formal" council meeting began oblivious to our concerns and questions.
No wonder there is community unrest, and suspicion of Council's motives. Did Council conduct a poll, was there a survey done that allowed them to conclude their agreement was in the public interest?
Based on the crowd of concerned citizens jamming the fire hall in Thedford at this council meeting, I think it's safe to say PVB has already interfered with our enjoyment of the beach. And finally, what formula was used to determine that $2 million of liability insurance was sufficient, or too much?
Why not $5 or for that matter $10 million…..after all we are talking about thousands of people on our beach throughout the prime summer months….and not just this year, but for the next 10 summers?
Citizens of the Greater Grand Bend area don't let a group of politicians and self serving entities decide the fate of OUR beach, OUR natural gem. Make your views known to Council.
Robert Green
Robert Green & Associates
