Community information or election propaganda?

Earlier this summer Councillor Peter Hume distributed a flyer “Riverview Community Update – July 2010” in which he provided important information on some community issues including the Industrial Avenue Bus Garage.

The city has been presented an opportunity that would permit access to the new Industrial Avenue bus garage from Belfast Road. This would eliminate westbound morning bus traffic on Industrial Avenue and all returning busses would access the site from Belfast Road. If this proposed change comes to pass it will eliminate one of the contentious issues associated with the location of the garage on Industrial.

Proposed remediation measures to minimize levels of noise and air pollution still need to be proven however. It is unfortunate that residents of Riverview Park were never properly consulted before a decision on the Industrial Avenue location for the garage was taken in the first place. In the views of many, Industrial Avenue is not the best site on which to locate such a large bus garage.

Councillor Hume states that the improved access for the bus facility results from an agreement with a local landowner to provide the new bus garage with access to Belfast road. Details of a proposed arrangement between the landowner and the city are being negotiated and apparently the proposal will be presented for public comment when finalized.

Nice as all this seems it is unlikely that a landowner would provide the right of way to Belfast without some consideration (financial and/or otherwise). It is the “otherwise” that concerns me. This could include measures that might not otherwise pass muster with the City (zoning concessions, waivers on design/construction issues, etc.). Residents need to examine the details and demand changes if the proposed conditions appear questionable. Such conditions might well influence the direction of future developments in the area, leaving residents powerless to influence design and implementation decisions.

The timing of Councillor Hume’s announcement is interesting. The issue of the bus garage was a hot topic in the Riverview Park community last winter and at that time the Councillor was less than willing to consider significant changes to proposed plans for the garage design. Now, with a municipal election in the offing, everything appears to have changed and significant changes seem to be possible. The community must ensure that it is not being sold a “bill of goods.”