Re: 鈥淔ree Sundays ending for street parking,鈥� Feb. 21.
So 鈥渇ree鈥� Sunday parking downtown is about to become a thing of the past. Mayor Lisa Helps and council have decided they need the revenue to help fund 鈥渇ree鈥� bus passes for students come next fall.
This is, of course, the same bunch who cut the police chief鈥檚 budget increase in half, leaving the force without enough of an increase to cover current costs, let alone legislated increases such as MSP payments, but somehow found funds to add to the mayor鈥檚 personal empire and hire some new personnel to help her with her planning and advice. Perhaps they can advise her how to explain the sudden shortage of on-street police officers come May?
Sadly, it鈥檚 yet another example of an agenda-driven council majority, one that has become good at listening to a small, vocal minority of citizens, but utterly forsaken the concept that Victoria resides at the hub of a region of nearly half a million people. Every roadblock placed in front of folks outside the city limits who might wish to do business in the city merely drives those people elsewhere.
For some reason, council cannot see that. More鈥檚 the pity.
K.M. Frye
Central Saanich
