To the Editor:
The following is a ‘letter’ sent to all members of Council and some Saugeen Shores staff.
“As residents of Saugeen Shores, the Port Elgin Beach Preservers are requesting that the Town conduct a virtual Town Hall Meeting to present the completed site plan of the Cedar Crescent Village. It could be conducted similarly to the Market Street Development meeting on January 17th, with an open house session first, followed by a Q&A. Those wishing to provide live input or ask a question would register with Allison Wiber. Questions or comments could be limited to one or two per participant. The public would be able to watch via the Saugeen Shores YouTube channel.
The Southampton Residents Association conducted an excellent Town Hall meeting in conjunction with the Centre for Coastal Conservation in August of this year. It was well received and participants asked questions or comments via text chat alongside the presentation.
The normal viewing audience for Council meetings is around 100- 150 viewers. When the most recent concept plan for the CCV was unveiled on November 22, 2021, the viewing numbers shot up to 521. The only other meetings that have attracted these kinds of numbers have been those where there have been delegations related to the waterfront or plans for beach re-opening due to COVID-19.
The people of Saugeen Shores care about this development and want to have meaningful input.
The final engineering design plans and site plan agreement are slated to be shared by the investors at Council on January 10, 2022. We have been waiting for 30 months (since July 22, 2019) to see the final unveiling. For this development to have the support of the people of Saugeen Shores, the proponents and Council need to be willing to listen and address any and all concerns.
For the good of all, we need the Cedar Crescent Village to be a success. A Town Hall Meeting would provide a gesture of good will and an opportunity to restore confidence in this Private Public Partnership.”
Patricia Corrigan-Frank
Port Elgin Beach Preservers
