To the editor,
Re: Council approves re-zoning to pave way for data centre, Nov. 2.
Nanaimo city council continues to place the needs of developers before the needs of the people of Nanaimo. As the mayor has said, “people who invest are entitled to have reasonable expectations around appropriate land use” and obviously the residents cannot hope to have the same expectations.
On Oct. 24, city council approved a bylaw change changing the zoning to allow a construction of a data centre which provides neither housing nor any significant employment. Were these not identified as major campaign promises for both the mayor and council members?
Councillors do not consider the merit or even the viability of proposed projects and their land use before voting on development proposals. We must ask who then is critically evaluating proposals for their environmental and societal impacts. It would appear not to be our elected representatives who feel obliged to approve any and all developments.
Do we not have reasonable expectations that our elected representatives will exercise due diligence when considering any developments with the aim of making Nanaimo a more liveable and sustainable community for everyone?
Meg Rintoul, Nanaimo
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