Re: “County to explore Springbank community centre options,” article, March 19. Dear Editor, I was interested to learn from Ben Sherick’s article that Rocky View County (RVC) is looking at options to pay for a community centre in Springbank. Now that council meetings are on YouTube, I thought I’d try it out. Before I watched, I hadn’t realized how convoluted the rules are for allocating the money from selling County land. As a result, I hadn't understood how far offside Coun. Kim McKylor’s proposal was. Is a community centre in Springbank desirable? My first thought was yes. After more thought, I realized we already have lots more resources than many other RVC communities. McKylor suggested without a community centre, there is nowhere in Springbank to hold receptions or events. I challenge that statement – I was just at a beautiful wedding reception at the Wild West Centre right in the heart of Springbank. In addition, there is the Springbank Park for All Seasons, the Heritage Club and three schools. Isn’t Langdon screaming for a high school? How does directing these funds to the Springbank Community Association help my friends in Langdon? The longer I listened, the more I found the conversation really off-putting. McKylor’s personal attack on the Rocky View West Recreation Board’s chair and her questioning of the rec board’s competency was totally out of line. Most boards make their decisions by majority vote. McKylor said she spoke to two members who did not agree with the chair. If McKylor had questions about the board’s position, she should have talked to the chair directly. She didn’t, and chose instead to bad-mouth her at council. At a time when it is getting harder and harder to find volunteers, we should be applauding them – not publicly criticizing them. Furthermore, I believe the rec board has seven members. Assuming four or five agreed with the chair, what is McKylor’s point? The majority was there. Wasn’t it McKylor who accused the four who publicly opposed the hiring of the County’s CAO as being nothing more than sour grapes, as they weren’t the majority? Her hypocrisy doesn’t stop there. McKylor went on and on about how important it is to take a broader, regional view of recreation issues, suggesting the rec board wasn’t doing so. Yet, her attempt to bypass the board to promote a project she supports couldn't be more contrary to those values. At least the rec board looks at balancing competing demands across the whole district. If the local rec board decides other priorities are more important, as a resident, I need to accept their assessment. It should not be for me, or our local councillor, to second guess or ignore their collective expertise. Else why have boards at all? Julia Westin-Brown Division 2
