To the Editor,
Re: New bid offered for Wildwood, July 28.
I live close to Wildwood on Yellowpoint Road and have always admired Merve Wilkinson’s vision of eco-forestry. At first blush, a sale to a fellow eco-forester and Merve’s apprentice might seem appropriate, but I cannot help but shake my head at The Land Conservancy’s notion of ‘conservancy.’
TLC took stewardship of Wildwood because of donations made by the public to hold Merve’s property in public trust (which is what Merve wanted). To sell it to a private individual (eco-forester or not) is counter to what every donor believed would happen to Wildwood under TLC’s stewardship.
A private sale is a complete and utter violation of trust and – worse – an underhanded way of ‘profiting’ on the backs of the very public donors that the TLC needs to operate. Shame on the TLC.
I really hope that the B.C. Supreme Court recognizes this duplicity and does not allow this private sale. The Eco-Forestry Institute Society is willing and prepared to complete the agreement they signed with the TLC last November. They are a far better fit for this property and further, a sale to that organization will fulfil Merve’s wishes of keeping the land a public trust in perpetuity.
Scott KimlerLadysmith
To the Editor,
Re: New bid offered for Wildwood, July 28.
When I, along with so many others, donated first to purchase and then protect Wildwood, I shared Merve Wilkinson’s dream to preserve that forest for the public good. All of us believed in Merve’s plan and felt it was worthwhile. Now it seems that TLC thinks, that in return for a large amount of money, a single individual should own Wildwood instead of a group of those same donors. If there ever was a loss to the community, it is this. Wildwood was the reason we became involved in concern for our environment. It is entirely possible that caring about Merve’s idea of preserving the forest and everything in it will now be lost. What a sad end to a beautiful dream.
Joanne ManleyVictoria