Growth

A friend of mine brought in some old newspaper clippings. Some more than 10 years old. They outlined problems in the County and, surprisingly, we have the same problems today we had in 2012. Affordable housing was on the agenda then. Ten years ago. Anything changed? Remaking County Road 49? Still in limbo. But remaking or destructing CR 49 is by far the least of our worries.

These are Council things: Affordable housing for those who can afford it, building a new hospital, making sure everyone employed by Council does well. They plan for the future, and they don’t look back. This begs a question:

WHO ASKED FOR GROWTH?
Growth is the key to the helplessness we feel as County people. I’m going to take a wild guess here and say County longtimers do not want growth. They suffer the anguish of swarms of visitors, and take to the sideroads when they arrive.

Not surprisingly, the so-called ‘newcomers’ (those who arrived sometime after the Loyalists) are not keen on growth either. They came here for the same reasons we want to live here.

What we have in common is one thing: Everyone is here because they love to be here. Another thing in common: We love to be here because of what we are. That’s what keeps County people here, and that’s what new people want too.

So, to take a consensus, everyone likes the County just the way it is. Some would like it to revert to the time when Bloomfield had a grocery store, a druggist and a hardware store. That ain’t gonna happen. But most people want a place a) that they have loved their whole lifetime, and b) a place that enticed them to move here and enjoy a new life.

OUR FUTURE?
Only one entity in the County wants us to grow big and bigger, then huge. That is our Council, who seems to care nothing about what we have, or what our heritage means. What communities used to be, though they were worn down, one at a time, over the course of time.

They are looking to the future, where possible growth is possible. (I did that on purpose … two possibles do not make a reality.)

THE BIG QUESTION HERE IS …
Other than Council, who wants tremendous growth? I don’t. I suspect there’s a pile of voiceless, helpless people out there trying to shout this message: Why do we need growth? What’s it for? Who needs it? Us? I think not.

We have memories of the County we want. Community. Connection. Life in a beautiful landscape of land, trees, water and wildlife. That’s why we’re here. Growth is not on our list of ‘things we desire’.

So why then is Council ignoring what we want, and forging their own vision of the future … without us? I’m not a fool. I want a great Christmas gift, but I get socks and pajamas. In this case, we want something more— actually something less—than what Council plans for us.

HEARING BUT NOT LISTENING
I’ve done a lot of meetings and presentations over the last 40 years. I’ve been part of a lot of committees. Some of them made me wish I had a knife, so I could off myself before the meeting ended.

One major thing I learned is: Everyone in a meeting has an agenda. Not a CIA agenda, but a personal one. There’s the person who always asks: “What’s the bottom line?” That’s the one who cares about nothing except for the dollars and cents. Then there’s the one who says: “Excuse me Madam President, but new items on the floor must be presented in new business under Item 7.” Everyone groans. They just want to hear what they need to hear. But some dick has read Robert’s Rules of Order, instead of the New Testament, so we all need to wait for Item 7.

Council is proud to hold regular public meetings with its peasants. They hear, but they do not listen. Most of the time it’s: “Here’s what we’re going to do.” Then they listen, and end the meeting with: “Here’s what we’re going to do.” I’ve seen this so many times, in so many groups, it makes me cry to recall those moments.

THERE’S ALWAYS CHIP TRUCKS
Sorry to change direction, but there’s more to explore. There’s lots of good things happening in the County. I count wineries and local breweries in that mix. They are cool. (Sorry, I don’t know the current upscale term for ‘cool’, so I’ll use one from the 1960s. The current, “That’s totally sick” should not apply here.) But restaurants, though a great addition to our community, are really ‘special night’ venues for most of us.

I will not likely pay $25 for a burger, even if the meat has been raised by a monk in Tibet, and the cow has been given a proper death by cattle electric chair. In short, somewhere along the line we became a ‘venue’, instead of a place with earth and wind and water.

A friend of mine said he liked a chip truck, with two smokers behind, and Adirondack chairs in front. He said it had “a good vibe.” And that’s what draws people here. That’s progress.

WHAT ABOUT US?
Growth brings new people. Good thing? Bad thing? Time will tell. People used to move here because they loved the ‘vibe’ of the County. They may even love the open country, the clean air, and actually seeing birds not killed by city smog. This new breed—buying into new developments —will come here because they can afford it, so why not?

And they can do it, because having money rules all. Growth now means building a hierarchy of people, based on their income. The new crowd has no roots here. They don’t need to.

So what about us? We stick to our traditional ways— ironically the very thing that drew people to us. But if the County’s growth plan works, we will be the disenfranchised. We will be the ‘used to be’ and eventually dismissed and forgotten. It’s funny because we created the ‘vibe’ that attracted people to visit here, and move here. Just by being us.

Clearly Council is salivating over new people, and new people’s money, and some tax dollars that might make their job easier. Frankly, not on board with that. Making money for the County is not my job.

Years ago, County Council served the people of Prince Edward County. Before that, the township councils took care of business, and took care of us. Those days are gone. Today the money is Big Money, and there’s no indication our current leaders give a sweet damn about us—who we are, what we are, what we were and what we want.

Once we were all on the same train, and it was good. Growth is the new direction, just like when building tourism was the new goal. Tourism spun out of control. I suspect growth will also spin out of control. We may not be on that train, but it’s a train, and it will leave without us.

countymag@bellnet.ca