Why didn’t Collingwood staff and council ensure that something as basic as water treatment capability was keeping pace with the growth they were well aware was happening and likely to continue?
As a daily newspaper reporter back in the day, covering local council meetings was always a challenge when the subject of infrastructure came up. Infrastructure was cumbersome. It wasn’t interesting. It wasn’t “sexy.”
Now all these years later, it’s still a challenge to convince readers – and even some politicians – that infrastructure is important. After all, it’s made up of elements largely unseen – or seen but unnoticed – such as water and sewer, roads and transit, etc. But as “boring” as infrastructure may seem, it’s crucial to the health and sustainability of any community – as we recently discovered when the Town of Collingwood announced it was halting new development because the local water treatment plant was nearing capacity.
Since we launched On The Bay more than 17 years ago, we’ve been publishing stories about growth and development. We’ve made it clear that our community is growing at ever-faster rates, with no end in sight.
So, what happened to our infrastructure? Why didn’t Collingwood council and staff ensure that something as basic as water treatment capability was keeping pace with the growth they were well aware was happening and likely to continue? They were happy to collect development fees on housing project after housing project, but where was that money going if not to ensure that town services could accommodate the growth?
Writer Marc Huminilowycz tries to answer those and other tough questions in our feature article in this issue, holding a magnifying glass up to all of our local municipalities to explain what went wrong, what else could go wrong, and how to ensure that blueprints like Official Plans don’t just sit on a shelf while engineers are ignored and infrastructure crumbles.
The very definition of sustainable development is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” If we can’t even meet our current needs, what does that say about the future?
When the next municipal election rolls around, we must elect local politicians who don’t just make flashy promises, but can actually do the dull work of adopting rational, well-thought-out plans – and ensuring they’re acted upon – so we don’t end up with a community that is the equivalent of a huge, showy mansion sitting atop a collapsing foundation.
Speaking of the future, we’re looking into our own future here at On The Bay after saying farewell to Jeff Shearer. We wish him all the best in his retirement, which no doubt will include lots of community involvement. And we are pleased to welcome Dave Loopstra as the new Publisher of On The Bay. Dave is an inspired choice to take the reins, and I look forward to working with him to take our magazine to the next level while maintaining the editorial quality and integrity upon which we’ve built our own solid foundation. ❧
Janet Lees,
Editor
