Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 5, 1995, Winnipeg, Manitoba Brian Cole 6977044 readers forum Winnipeg free press ii 7 August 1995 process ignores Community interests a no nasal to hit ill new in Ucac in Tho a proposal to build new houses on the old Wood Haven school property has been the subject of debate for Reader Cathy a James resident with a degree in environmental explains what the issues Are and Why residents feel frustrated by the process at City there Are times when decision making at City Hall defies All the recent controversy surround ing the Sale of surplus school land in James is one of those residents who use the Winter Toboggan Hill in Woodhaven Park Are confused and in a recent the cites executive policy committee approved an application by Greentree Homes to sub Divide the old Woodhaven school prop erty into residential portions of the property Are Well suited to this How four of the 15 lots along Ashcroft Point should never have been considered for City City school trustees and the Media All failed to make one simple distinction the difference Between empty Green space and a unique Community the Woodhaven school property is comprised of two distinct units the por Tion along Glendale Avenue on which the school building now and the portion along Ashcroft Point which has never been disturbed and the site of a Natur Al escarpment known As the Woodhaven the Woodhaven Hill has historical and recreational its Horseshoe shaped Bank slopes abruptly Down from a level plateau to the flood Plain of Stur Geon it is a popular Toboggan with generations of neighbourhood Chil Dren eagerly awaiting the first snowfall to Rush to the Hill with their Large numbers of Hunters congregated on the site each Spring before setting out to Hunt the Buffalo herds of the great Many Arrow Heads and other artefacts have been found by area it was a very prominent meeting As confirmed by both Manitoba historic resources and the University of a Small portion of this historic area has never been Dis this is where the City wants to permit four of the 15 Cathy Hummelt Why would the City give its Blessing to build houses on this part of the school property there Are 11 other lots on which development is Why would the City permit the desecration of a Well used Community Hill instead of answering this City councillors argued in circles around this debating whether James had enough or too much Green it is time they realized that this is not an Issue of Green the Issue at stake is the loss of a unique and Well used recreational and historic opposition at Public 163 people appeared in opposition to the developers application and hundreds More signed some residents wanted the entire site to remain As Park others wanted Only to eliminate the lots along the in the everyone was an alter native development plan supported by area residents was presented by the cites own Parks and recreation depart ment but rejected by the cites committee on planning and Community the Woodhaven Community offered to Purchase part of the and proposed an alternative Resolution that would see Homes built along the already disturbed All were the interests of the Community were most people would agree that infill housing on previously developed land is it stimulates the increases tax Revenue and slows Urban most of the lots on the Wood Erika and Bob Hummelt play on Woodhaven despite its historical Significances slated for Haven school site fit this the construction of Homes on Virgin land at the top of a kiddies Toboggan Hill is not infill rear property lines and fences on the newly developed properties will Crest the top of the from a recreational Point of the elimination of even one or two lots from the East end of the subdivision would have gone a Long Way towards maintaining the character of the had it been the will of the the subdivision could have been designed to Benefit both the Community and the the City of Winnipeg act leaves Little room for conciliatory Deci it stipulates a multilevel process that pits communities and developers As and allows Council lors at the Community committee level to make decisions simply to appease con decisions can then be Over turned at the next level by the committee on planning and Community services without further Community after the original Public hearings Are constituents Are prohibited from making representation to any member of even if a decision is discussions continue within various City changes to the subdivision plan Are but the Community is pre vented from it is is to protect the inter ests of the the interests of the Community would appear to be Sec even though it is the Community that must live with the opposition to the Woodhaven school development is not about lost Green it is about losing a unique and vital part of the James All of which could be in approving the the cites executive policy committee recommended that building permits not be issued until the Manitoba Branch has conducted a Field examination of the James residents can cling to the Hope that the City will recognize the value of this property and reconsider its Deci Sion to develop along the this is a possibility that should not be Portage and main is designed to give readers a Chance to write on issues they care if you would like to write a Contact Brian editorial Page at gun Law support biased letters to the one can indulge the foolish Ness and Bias of some of the contributors to the editorial when the free press itself is so blatantly it is difficult to remain the editorial in referring to is politics of guns free july the Liberal Bias of the free press is the article insinuates that our Provin Cial in particular Justice minister Rosemary should be ashamed of bucking Bill 68 and that Joseph spences death Possi Bly could have been prevented by gun How on Earth can the registration of a gun prevent its misuse this makes no More sense than saying if we Register a car it will prevent that car from being used for criminal thank goodness our provincial leaders have the intelligence and foresight to realize keep up the Good work Justice minister Don Russell Moosehorn gun Law not the solution your politics of guns free july says Manitoba Justice minister Rosemary Vodrey and her colleagues should have the decency to get out of the Way of the Federal governments measures to Deal with Street gangs and youth the editorial would have been More helpful if it had Analysed the Way in which the Federal propos als would Federal Justice minister Allan Rock proposes to create a registry for Long guns one already exists for handguns at a Cost Likely to exceed to record own ers and their firearms serial num in the Spence the firearm was recovered soon after the the owner is and a suspect was please Tell us what a building full of com Puter records in Ottawa would have done to help the the suspects age and Circum stances make it very unlikely that he had a firearms acquisition cer and his Possession of the gun without one is a criminal offence right without Allan rocks the same goes for Safe firearms storage Laws now in we could expect charges How to reach us the free press welcomes letters from letters must be signed and should include a clearly printed address and Telephone names will be published but not All letters May be edited for style and Short letters Are less Likely to be please address letters to letters to the Winnipeg free 1355 Mountain Winnipeg r2x letters can be sent to our fax number letters May be submitted through the internet at . Letters sent via the internet obviously cannot be but must include Home address and Telephone under these in addition to the murder please Tell us How the charge of failing to Reg ister would have prevented this or in the meantime put a hold on the righteous Vodrey actions May be motivated by More than just crass pol Peter Hildebrand Winnipeg editorial readers support Rosemary Vodrey stand on gun and leave politics out of Alfred Sander Winnipeg says it All your main politics of guns free july says it at first i was very angry As your attack on our Fine Justice minister Rosemary Vodrey How upon further reflection your headline hit it right on the this gun control debate is pure the Liberal government has stumbled upon a winning Hobby and they Are Riding it for All its so also Are All the other dogo oders of our As your Fred has so aptly pointed out from time to your own article has some doubt about its effectiveness As you Well never know whether Ottawa gun control legislation would have been enough to prevent spences so Why pass another Law that is just a shot in the dark better to spend some Wiser dollars on youth in Yew Church related youth swimming encore re new Guy in town has fresh View free july i think Lindsay letter in support of building a new Arena and keeping the jets in Winnipeg should be published every Day and at least twice on the front providing he Elizabeth Wilcox Winnipeg Stab a out in 96 on March at about a Lone plainclothes police offi cer was struggling to arrest a Man on a downtown sidewalk on Portage by the University of win he identified himself to a civilian and asked for he was the second civilian he asked for All the while still struggling with the turned out to be the struggling mans this Guy pulled out a 13inch Butcher knife Why did he have that and attacked the kneeling the Guy stabbed the officer once on the left breast and once on the right thank god the officer was wearing his the officer managed to sub due the male a half hour later the Guy laughingly stated to the hey i Only stabbed you the officer is a husband and the Guy is a Street gang Wannabe who claimed total Amne Sia of the the Guy was sentenced to 30 months on july he will be out on Day parole in Janu Ary the judge stated that this was a deterrent its its just a joke and an As a spouse of a police officer not that officer i can Only say if the judiciary will not protect who they deserve much bet Kimberly err Winnipeg a simple Case of arithmetic there is an obvious linkage Between Canadas unemployment rate and the state of the Federal governments workers who have lost their instead of adding to the Federal Treasury through the income and sales taxes they now subtract from it through the unemployment insurance and welfare they the historical record indicates that unemployment rates of the current 910 per cent level have absolutely guaranteed that the Federal governments Revenue would be less than its in the 48 years since Cana Das unemployment rate was under five per cent in 17 Over seven per cent in 22 Between five and seven per cent in nine in every year in which the unemployment rate was under five per the Federal government had a surplus of Revenue Over expenditure in every year in which the unemployment rate was Over seven per it had a deficit in the nine years in which the unemployment rate was Between five and seven per the government had five deficits and four finance minister Paul Martin is attempting to bring Down the fed eral deficit by spending cuts that will put More people out of work when the country unemployment rate is already Over nine per he is evidently assuming that there will not be in the future the consistent relationship that existed in the past half Century Between the country unemployment rate and the Federal govern ments Ruben Winnipeg Long employment a Good future for some Federal civil servants to state they see no future and therefore opt to accept Early full pension is i really see no future free july what about the Long and lucrative 2535 years of employment was this not a future Many would love to be in their i suggest civil servants be a Little thankful and not be too Winnipeg doonesbury by Garry Trudeau think heal than i think american peo Tehju supportpb6 think an to haunt in Shatsk Whyou ;