Raise the Hammer

I sent a short, strongly worded email to the mayor and councillors. I sent this longer one to the other government players (before the various parties denied that the Feds had pulled potential funding for West Harbour):

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Dear MPPs, Premier McGuinty, MPs, and Prime Minister Harper:

At a time when Government is emphasizing the fiscal benefits of creating a healthier population by investing in work and leisure sites that can be accessed via walking and public transit, the Federal and Provincial Governments have decided that Hamilton, Ontario, must NOT build its planned new stadium at a West Harbour location that is easy to walk to and readily accessible by public transit.

At a time when the toxic "time bomb" of Hamilton's abandoned small-scale industrial sites, in residential areas close to the proposed West Harbour location, is making headlines and drawing attention to the long-standing need for a concentrated clean-up and rehabilitation of the city's core, the Federal and Provincial Governments have decided to pull funding from the West Harbour stadium project -- a project that would include the clean-up of contaminated ground.

Instead, the Federal and Provincial Governments have put their commitment toward the East Mountain site, a site that is vastly more expensive, vastly more difficult to access, and hobbles the potential clean-up and rehabilitation of Hamilton's core. Further, it has been suggested that the East Mountain site has the potential to contribute to increased flooding along the residential Red Hill corridor due to the increase of runoff that results from paving a vast amount of farmland.

I am a Hamilton homeowner as well as a Toronto homeowner. I believe in Hamilton's economic and cultural potential. Its citizens will not stand down in the face of the undemocratic affront delivered by the Federal and Provincial Governments this week. Hamiltonians will not forget that the Governments this week voted against the opportunity for Hamiltonians to safeguard and improve their own health, safety and environmental responsibility.

I do not believe that the Hamilton Ti-Cats or any other private interest group should be afforded concessions that are detrimental to Hamiltonians.

I do believe that the Governments should support the City of Hamilton's decision to move forward in the direction that its Representatives, expert advisors and citizenry have decided is most advantageous -- building the stadium at the West Harbour site.