QUAYSIDE COMMUNITY CENTRE
THE TIME IS NOW.

While Quayside Residents’ watch their neighbours advertising events in their own community centres, Quayside has no place for its residents to gather, to commune, to be a neighbourhood.  Seems the city over the years has neglected to give our area a common building with which to host events, special educational programs, day care, exercise rooms, QCB meetings or any other community service.

This became particularly obvious to those in the area when in ’07 there was a serious possibility of flooding.  Should such an emergency have occurred, it was realized by community leaders that there was no place to tell residents to gather.  Likewise, should a disaster such as an earthquake take place and should such an event take down the two bridges which connect our community to the rest of the city (let alone the province), again there is no place for people to gather.  No one place where emergency officials can go to take care of residents affected by such event.

Since our land base in Quaysiide is finite, and the City has neglected to get any amenity from any developer (except for the dog park – which cost taxpayers money and is only temporary), we feel it is time for the City to seriously consider what options are available in Quayside to establish a Community Centre.  As one of the most densely populated areas in all of New West it would seem logical for a facility to be considered.

Obviously there are only two areas left in which such a building could be placed.  One is the site between the Rialto and Kruger Paper (Poplar Landing) and the other is at the far end where Mayor and Council are purchasing the waterfront property.  According to our information, both these sites have no firm plans in place, therefore now is the time to discuss building a Community Centre.

With the new DCC’s (Development cost charges), Casino revenues, Federal and Provincial incentives to create make-work programs and the like, there is likely suffient monies to accomplish such a task.  All we need is the political will.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE QUAYSIDE HAVE ITS OWN COMMUNITY CENTRE?   If so, please email us at the Quayside Community Board Quayside Community Board info@quaysideboard.com and also to the Mayor, Council and Planning Director LISA SPITELLI at city hall postmaster@newwestcity.ca.

We will be collecting the names for an eventual petition to consul and the City of this issue.