Editor's note: The following letter is in response to Jim Curry's letter, titled “It's not too late to challenge event centre decision”
While I agree that it's never too late to challenge the decision for the location of the event center until the first shovel of dirt is actually dug, I have to comment on the insinuation this has put on our councils' decision-making ability.
We vote our council in, thus trusting that they are the best people to make decisions on our behalf. In this instance, it wasn't a close decision, but one that showed the majority agreed. While many well-known names were cited in Mr. Curry's letter, they are, in fact, just citizens expressing their opinion, no matter what their station in life was or is. We all have an opinion, and I have to say that my name was not mentioned, nor were any of the names of my friends and family who all agreed with councils' decision.
I keep waiting for someone who is for the downtown location to come up with a solution to the parking dilemma that would ensue on any given night that a major event was to take place. Or on the mayhem that would occur when people are trying to leave that event. This problem alone would influence my decision as to whether or not I would actually attend an event, which I feel is especially unfair due to the fact that I live here and have for my entire life.
We are a city that covers a huge area and utilizing some of our outlying acreage to expand the development of our city only makes sense. Why keep cramming things in the downtown area when there is no need to? I still don't quite understand how an arena that is not used on a daily basis helps to keep the downtown going. I have not once said I'm going downtown because the arena is there, but I do go downtown to frequent shops and restaurants that are an integral part of our downtown core.
Often, the architectural school is mentioned as going hand-in-hand with the arena, but I don't quite understand how the arena is beneficial to the school. But to locate the event centre slightly removed from the downtown (I don't think a five-minute drive is really a hardship) makes perfect sense, especially considering all the other event centres that would be able to move here as a result of this location, thus benefiting our beautiful city in so many positive ways.
I'd also like to thank Mr. Zulich for having the foresight and the drive to present this to our councillors and for the positive outcome it has produced. I, too, am a concerned and proud citizen of Greater Sudbury and would not vote for a councillor based solely on his platform of overturning this decision. I vote for councillors based on their entire platform, but may not necessarily agree with everything they present. Thank you to our council for going outside the recommendations put forward and realizing what is best for Greater Sudbury.
Lynne Desbiens
Garson