SJ needs new housing

Originally posted 12/16/06 on PersonPlaceorThing.blogspot.com

This is a clipping from the Telegraph Journal's letters to the editor section (Dec 15, 2006: http://www.canadaeast.com/ce2/docroot/article.php?articleID=79645 )

It is good to see more community members saying what they feel and not being intimidated by the fact that they might not live directly adjacent a project. The entire community needs to be considered when important projects are being considered for the city.

SJ needs new housing

When I hear people like Jon MacQueen complaining about the Leinster Court project time and time again. When I hear that these people are putting in such a tremendous effort to have this development stopped, there's only one conclusion that can be drawn up. These people on King St. East will never be happy until these subsidized housing units are shipped somewhere else.

I don't blame anyone from the Business Community Anti-Poverty Initiative (BCAPI) for not meeting with these people. It sounds to me they already have their minds made up. They may say the issue is about the scope of the building, or blocking out their sunlight, but the only real issue they are concerned about is living next to people in subsidized housing and protecting their own property value. Maybe these people should have considered the possibility of development when they moved next to a big empty parking lot.

The design of the building looks good. I think it will be a compliment to the uptown area. Granted, it's not going to look like a traditional heritage building, but a project of this size cannot fit into the traditional scope of what the other heritage buildings look like. You simply cannot fit 50 units into a heritage building.

To the people on King St. East, I say, cut this behavior out. You look like a bunch of rich snobs trying to run the homeless out of town. You're not the only people who live uptown, so I believe other people should have a say too. The main facts are that there are people in Saint John who really need subsidized housing, and this project represents positive development in the city. It's time to get our priorities straight and put homes before heritage.

SHELDON EPSON
Saint John

If Sheldon Epson or Brunswick News aren't comfortable with this copy and paste posting I will be glad to take it down, though the letter is important and should be read.