Member of city staff and OC Transpo missing

Last evening (Jan 27, 2010) there was a meeting of Riverview Park Community Association (RPCA) to discuss the proposed expansion of the OC Transpo bus garage on Industrial Avenue that is currently under construction. There are many concerns about this development (pollution, noise and congestion) that have never been adequately discussed with the community.

At last night’s meeting members of the community were given the opportunity to air their concerns and to call for action. The meeting was well attended and the event was included in CTV’s 11:30 pm local newscast. Unfortunately there was not a single representative from the city, OC Transpo or city council in attendance.

RPCA was informed that Councillor Peter Hume had a previous engagement and was unable to attend. This is understandable but it is also unfortunate that Hume did not ask RPCA to reschedule the meeting to a date when he could attend and hear first hand the concerns of residents in his ward.

RPCA was also notified that The City official who had planned to come tonight is unavailable due to an illness in the family. It is unfortunate that attendance was not delegated to another member of city staff.

There was not a single representative from OC Transpo in attendance; this is shameful.

The meeting produced a number of recommendations and observations that will now be presented by members of RPCA’s executive to a smaller group from the city including, Councillor Hume, and OC Transpo.

The new bus garage has been a major issue for debate at city hall this week, with OC Transpo requesting an additional $17M to complete the project, a grand total of $97M. Some councillors are asking for a review of the entire project and for OC Transpo’s operations in general. Nancy Schepers, the deputy city manager in charge of transit, has admitted there have been some problems with the management of the construction of the garage.

In light of all this, the community’s concerns are clearly justified and need to be heard.