Cascade Park resident Jim McConnell shares a letter he wrote council members about the Save Our Streets efforts
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and do not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
I hope you are doing well and have done your research into who and what to vote for. We are blessed to live in a country where we have a say in electing our representatives and initiatives, although not as much as we used to have. Below is a letter I wrote to several of our Vancouver City Council members – FYI. Only one wrote back — it looked like an automated response. If you have not yet signed the petition to save our streets and keep the city from increasing traffic jams, please consider doing so.
Dear Elected City Officials, (the 4 up for election)
My wife and I specifically moved to our home on McGillivray Blvd. seven years ago because we love this area and the boulevard. It is easy to drive and beautiful to watch as we go through our neighborhood.
Between 80 and 90 percent of the people in Cascade Park and those who use McGillivray Blvd do not want our street destroyed by taking it down to one lane each way. You seem to want to force your will on the people who live here. I hate the fact that you are not listening to your constituents. You are not acting like elected representatives but like authoritarian dictators.
Do any of you live in Cascade Park? Why do you want to clog our boulevard and greatly inconvenience us? Isn’t your job to help Vancouver residents, not to hurt them? Along with dozens of other concerned citizens, I have worked to inform people in our neighborhood of your destructive plans.
I have recently retired from 42 years of encouraging and supporting students and their parents as a public-school educator. I have never responded the way I feel I have to respond to you. If you continue pushing your selfish agenda to destroy our street, I will work even harder to see that you are not re-elected.
Jim McConnell
Vancouver
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“You are not acting like elected representatives but like authoritarian dictators” sums it all up nicely.
The applies to EVERY City Council member, and ESPECIALLY to Mayor Annie. In Vancouver, unless you are a big-dollar developer, you are a nobody to whom no one will listen.
The problem here is that local residents have a mistaken view that they are the constituents of City Council. Nothing could be further from the truth. In reality, the only “constituents” council listens to these days are the highly paid “Staff” who come up with these ideas in the first place. Staff works for the City Manager, and he gets paid to take his marching orders from Council, not you.
Stand by for Complete Streets construction to begin on McGillivray. City crews have already been out surveying and painting reference marks around all of the intersections….look for all of the blue paint.
I hope there are several East Vancouver residents who are getting ready to challenge every sitting Council Critters next year. I’ll be happy to purchase your campaign signs….
Jim wrote, “If you have not yet signed the petition to save our streets and keep the city from increasing traffic jams, please consider doing so.”See the ClarkCountyToday article, Initiative process: Save Vancouver Streets looks to change city’s plans for roadwaysFor drawings of the proposed removal of a lane of traffic in each direction on McGillivray, and for the website link for info on signing petitions, also included in that article.