Quote:
Originally Posted by Keith P.
Given HRM's profligate and wasteful spending of tax dollars, she would be very wrong. Many HRM citizens decry the wasteful spending done by the municipality. The question becomes one of what is wasteful and what is worthwhile. The HRM taxpayer paid for the councillor to visit the west coast. That is likely wasteful spending. The bike lane overkill on Wyse Rd is also in that category, as will be the Macdonald bridge bike flyover if and when that gets underway. The bloated, expensive HRM bureaucracy that continues to grow unchecked is unsustainable but few citizens seem to be even aware of that waste.
But getting back to the Wanderers Grounds, there have always been some sort of crude spectator seating there in my memory. There also used to be a baseball backstop and IIRC, dugouts. Those were built by the city. I'm not so sure how what is being asked for here is so different. HRM has built several ugly aircraft-hanger styled buildings around the municipality at huge cost to pay homage to the god of minor hockey. They are about to spend $150 million to reconstruct the Halifax Forum to not particularly productive use. That is all surely very wasteful spending. I am not sure why this is such a contentious issue in contrast.
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I don't think this is a contentious issue, actually (unless you are perceiving the thought-exercise counterpoints I provided as 'contention'). This stadium improvement will almost surely go through, and it should. I think most people will want it to.
I shouldn't perhaps have been irked by the (thankfully) unnamed councilor's comments, as they were part of a personal conversation that was shared with this board. I think a councilor's job is to work for his/her constituents, and thus gain perception of their wants/needs (which admittedly would be a difficult thing to do) and advocate for them, rather than roll eyes and basically be disrespectful to them (in attitude, though surely not in public view). That said, as you point out, there is a lot of money being spent on public projects, so perhaps her perception is off. Maybe she is still hurting over the lack of success (so far) of bringing a CFL team to Halifax... who knows?
One thing I will point out about your post is that all the things you mention have been, or will be, built for use of the citizens for amateur sports, or otherwise personal use. I played amateur sports as a youth, and can say that these provide great benefits in terms of physical and mental well-being.
The only issue I can see as being vaguely contentious is that this will be used for professional sports (as I've already covered), but when you consider how many fans gain benefit from attending the games, it's well worth it, IMHO. The Metro ...errr... Scotiabank Centre provides similar benefits, and nobody considers it to be 'contentious'...
I will say that the people involved were very crafty in requesting a "temporary" stadium first, as it probably wouldn't have happened if a full-on ask for a permanent stadium had been made from the start. However, the games have proven themselves popular with the locals, so now is the time to strike while the iron is hot. If sometime in the future the team should fold, Halifax will still have a stadium that could be used for amateur sports (as it always has been) and perhaps entertainment events.
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