June 11, 2016
1961
To the Editor:
RE: "Fixing shoreline erosion north of the Kincardine Harbour to cost $300,000"
This letter is to all the people who come to the parking lot at the bottom of Lambton Street, Kincardine, to sit by the lake and watch the waves and listen to their calming roll. To the parents who bring their little ones to the lake to throw stones. To those hard-working individuals who come to eat lunch and relax before going back to their stressful day.
This will be your last year to do that as the Municipality of Kincardine intends to do to this section of the lake what it did to the north section of Saugeen Street. Manitoba maples, weed trees, weeds, evergreens, a wall of garbage plants and no maintenance.
I cannot comprehend why the municipality would take one of the most beautiful and treasured areas of downtown and turn it into a useless, dangerous dump for weeds, brush, trees and garbage to collect - rendering it useless to its community. Would you like to picnic beside that mess? This area needs to be revitalized, not demolished.
Take a drive down Saugeen Street North to see the future of this beautiful area. Do you want your children playing there? Do you want to have a picnic there?
Rocks and trees along Saugeen Street North, Kincardine; photo by Liz Dadson
I understand that the municipality already has a plan and is putting it out for tender without public input. Public consultation into this project is essential so that the community can be certain that this irreplaceable asset is protected in a way that retains the current site lines to the lake for people who are restricted to their vehicles; that it is user-friendly, appealing and sustainable.
The municipality will have to take on the responsibility to remove the beach stones and debris that will absolutely pile up behind it and manage the weeds and the other plants that will surely want to take over if armour stone is used.
Can we not develop a plan for a wall that could stem the erosion, yet be attractive and useful? Reconstruct the boardwalk on top of the wall, with steps to access the beach.
If I seem skeptical, it's because this area, Macpherson Park, The Lawn Bowling Club, Dunsmoor Park, the tennis courts, has been ignored for years. The north picnic shelter was never replaced, the roof of the last remaining shelter needs to be replaced before we lose it too. The fence to the west side of the Lawn Bowling Club is a wire fence strung between fallen, termite ridden posts.
Picnic tables in Macpherson Park are few and far between if there is an event anywhere else in town. You already know the tennis courts are in bad shape, and I don't have the time or space to talk about the washrooms. So, I don't have a lot of confidence that this will be a priority project that will enhance our community.
If done properly, and as a revitalization project, not a band-aid, this area would be a wonderful upgrade to the shoreline and deem it safe from erosion forever.
Please, let council know how you feel. The easy way is to contact the clerk by E-mail at: clerk@kincardine.net and ask her to copy council. Just say, "I agree with Shirley." That way, councillor Randy Roppel will get a copy.
Give the new public works manager a call - Adam Weishar, at 519-396-3468, Ext. 7119. I spoke to him, he is very nice and would love to hear your opinion. Also, I believe the accessibility committee should have some input to this project.
Come on you seniors, I know you have computers!
Shirley Wright
Kincardine
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