The Editor,
Re: "Townhouse project gets green light," News, June 20.
To the caring citizens living near Maple and No. 2 roads, may I first offer my sympathy to you over city council's decision to allow yet another developer to proceed with a damaging and unwanted housing project.
I am quite frankly appalled that council members could blatantly ignore such a massive cry of protest over the negative impacts such a development will have on your quality of life.
For simplicity's sake, based on an average fourperson household, your petition of 500 signatures represents almost 150 plus households speaking against this.
City council needs to wake up to the fact that the character of a neighbourhood is at the top of the list of deciding factors as to why people chose to live there.
A high density townhouse development does not belong in the middle of a quiet single-family residential area. Council's argument that it's okay because it's served by an arterial street and the height has been dropped a bit is bureaucratic manipulation at its worst.
If this bending of the official community plan is allowed to continue, Richmond is in big trouble. Having multitudes of cars going in and out of developments such as this one increases local pollution, noise and risk of accidents, while decreasing pedestrian safety.
Having to add extra traffic lights will just serve to "harden the arteries." Traffic in downtown Richmond is at virtual gridlock because of the multitudes of concrete towers sprouting up literally one new one every week.
But still council allows that destructive and environmentally damaging trend to continue. We need to act now to save our precious community and preserve the quality of our neighbourhoods for our children.
I will certainly not be voting for the six councillors who supported this development.
David Indita-Jones Richmond
