City of Kelowna: it鈥檚 outrageous
Dear Editor:
Re: Kelowna city manager earns $100,000 more than B.C. premier by Ron Seymour (June 20)
Carson Binda, spokesman for the B.C. branch of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said via email: 鈥淚t鈥檚 outrageous for the city manager鈥檚 salary to increase 55 percent over the course of five years.鈥
And in Seymour鈥檚 June 28 column, he discussed the City of Kelowna鈥檚 new Welcome sign, to be placed along Highway 97 near Duck Lake. Seymour: 鈥...the minute it goes up, at a total cost approaching $1 million, the sign is going to be a perfect symbol of this city council鈥檚 hubris and profligacy.鈥
American singer-songwriter Paul Simon performs in three concerts this month at Vancouver鈥檚 Orpheum Theatre (July 25, 26 and 28.)
The third track on 鈥淪urprise鈥 -- his 2006 album -- is 鈥淥utrageous鈥.
What follows is a lyrical rewrite with Kelowna in mind:
Outrageous 2.0 (with apologies to Paul Simon)
It鈥檚 outrageous for the city manager鈥檚 salary to increase
Fifty-five percent over five years, city hall鈥檚 centrepiece
It鈥檚 outrageous that the residents of Hadgraft Wilson Place
Still wait for resolution since they were all displaced
It鈥檚 outrageous council approved a million dollar Welcome sign
And the 242 million dollar Parkinson Rec Centre Shrine
It鈥檚 outrageous at the lack of alternative housing for the poor
Outrageous, the traffic gridlock that K-Town drivers must endure
It鈥檚 outrageous for eight council members to vote themselves a big raise
A 750 grand park for Fido to play in during the dog days
It鈥檚 outrageous to spend 350 grand for a policing model review
And a downtown signature sign for 500 grand that鈥檚 brand new
It鈥檚 outrageous to spend 300 grand for two Christmas trees that are fake
Extending roads close to Munson and Carney Ponds is a huge environmental mistake
It鈥檚 outrageous that property taxes go up every year for civilians
When the city鈥檚 2024 accumulated surplus was 2.75 billion
It鈥檚 outrageous the amount of land that has been rezoned
From agricultural to industrial whenever developers have jawboned
It鈥檚 outrageous Kelowna Springs still hasn鈥檛 been expropriated
So the public good can at last be accommodated
It鈥檚 outrageous the talk of transparency and accountability
A Welcome sign is the perfect symbol of council鈥檚 hubris and profligacy
After the municipal election occurs in 2026
Will any council members have succeeded in their campaign politics?
Listen to Simon鈥檚 鈥淥utrageous鈥 on YouTube at (Paul Simon, 鈥淥utrageous鈥)
David Buckna
Kelowna
Scrap expensive welcome signage
Dear Editor:
In regard to Ron Seymour鈥檚 column of Saturday, June 28 edition of the Kelowna Courier, he asks the question, 鈥淪hould we be spending this much on a sign?鈥
Anyone with any common sense would answer with a re-sounding 鈥淣O!鈥
This council has to be reined in when it comes to extravagant spending of tax money. Where does it end? Do they think we all make the same wages as the City Manager? Can they accept the fact that some of us are on a month-to-month basic wage that can hardly get us through?
And how about pensioners 鈥 do they think we can afford to see our taxes squandered on something as stupid as an $800,000 welcoming sign?
Anyone driving to or passing through Kelowna knows exactly where they are, unless they are on some form of wacky tobaccy.
Three roadside signs - one on each entry of Highway 97 to the city and the other on Highway 33 - is all that is needed. They wouldn鈥檛 have to cost more than a couple of thousand dollars each including labour to erect them (just guessing).
I bet the provincial government would even print and install them at no cost to the city. They needn鈥檛 have to say much. 鈥淲elcome to Kelowna - Bring Money.鈥
John Broughton
Kelowna
Bike lanes: future of our community
Dear Editor:
Bike lanes are not a waste of money for the many people that use them.
Yes, I can see if you鈥檙e not a cyclist you would have that opinion. I read with interest a letter stating South Main is a disaster. Gaza is a disaster, Ukraine is a disaster, south main is a bit of a learning curve and a bit of an inconvenience.
My family has taken to bike riding recently and are so thankful for these bike lanes. One family member lives on Atkinson Street and is thankful for these bike lanes traffic calming results. I feel the same about South Main Street. If slowing down is an issue,take Main Street, you can still speed there.
I鈥檓 thrilled to see more and more riders using the lanes.
Bike lanes are the future!
Anne Henschel
Penticton
Many positive bike experiences
Dear Editor:
I鈥檝e had nothing but great experiences on the bike lane. It鈥檚 nice to have a route out of the city which is safer.
The world is changing and we need more bike alternatives for the sake of our environment and citizens health. Europe has bike friendly cities and are so far ahead of the car first North America mentality.
The Herald鈥檚 article asked for bad experiences. That鈥檚 sad as it鈥檚 easy to find the negative. I would hope the Herald would like both perspectives vs a door open for the negative. Penticton is an active city and can be a leader .
Graham Fraser
Penticton
Mark Carney鈥檚 shifting narrative
Dear Editor:
Mark Carney gas lighted us about Trump taking over the country. Now he says that Trump isn鈥檛 interested. The fear mongering was huge with a constant mantra that Trump would break us. Anyway, it worked long enough to get him elected.
Trump isn鈥檛 going to take us over, but he does want our abundant resources in spite of denials to the contrary. A five-minute discussion on what owning Quebec would mean is enough to dissuade anyone.
Carney is putting a lot of his economic hopes on the EU, but our enduring trade links with the US are dictated by history and distance. Last year our exports to the US were $434 billion, while exports to the EU were $34 billion. It鈥檚 just not possible to switch this around, and we鈥檝e already been burnt badly in dealings with China.
If the EU were to buy more from us it would mean buying less from others. The EU is committed to internal trade, and is under pressure to buy more from the US, although they certainly want our oil and gas. They still import significant quantities of Russian oil and LNG by third party tankers in spite of the Ukraine war.
Carney claims he鈥檚 a European, and has British and Irish passports to prove it. Watch out for the Euros; they鈥檒l kiss you on both cheeks before swindling you, while Trump only wants to be kissed on the lower cheeks.
Our ancestors left Europe in search of freedom and prosperity and to escape the tyranny of kings, dictators and tribal wars. The bureaucratic dictates of the Eurocrats are equally unwelcome. There are reasons why Britain quit the EU.
Reality has struck with pressures to spend more on defence and security, and money must be found for this. Carney is forecasting more debt than the Trudeau Liberals, but the pain can be less if cuts are made in other areas. And there are many festering boils to be lanced.
Our greatest wealth potential is our enormous reserves of oil and gas. Carney needs to switch ponies away from climate and become the world鈥檚 most energetic oil and gas salesman.
Dreams of net zero are quickly evaporating in the face of economic reality and policy reversals in the U.S. and Europe. Thankfully, Canadian automakers and the governments of Alberta and Ontario are energetically pushing back against this impractical and self-limiting Trudeau era ideology.
John Thompson
Kaleden
Write:
Kelowna: letters@ok.bc.ca
Penticton: letters@pentictonherald.ca
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