Editor:
Much more than the $7,500 cost to hold a public plebiscite on pay parking in Banff, the true reason one won’t be held is because council is scared.
They simply cannot, or will not, accept the clear and decisive will of the citizens for a second time on this issue they know will come if one is held. In the 2000 vote, the idea was soundly defeated by an 80-20 split.
Instead, they plan to follow tradition and cravenly circumvent the more desired democratic process of holding a binding public vote on the matter and arrogantly ramrod it through as if in a dictatorship.
Heretofore, council has demonstrated its unswerving capacity to spin doctor the issue to get their own agenda through rather than act on citizen advice (doors closed, outdoor displays, bridge location, angle parking, allowing more races, etc.).
If mayor and council truly believe they have public support for pay parking on their side, let them put their money where their mouth is and hold a binding public plebiscite with an unambiguous “yes” or “no” choice on the ballot.
This is far too important an issue to leave in the hands of mayor and council. Let the people decide.
Pay parking is destined to create far more problems than it is being billed to “solve.”
If council has any backbone at all, they will follow the advice of at least one member and hold the public vote.
Mark Bowes,
Banff
