EDITORIAL
In Our Opinion
One person's 'improvement' is another person's 'detriment'
Column - It's funny how an 'improvement' in one area can turn out to be a 'detriment' in another. Consider the proposal to change Central Frontenac's Official Plan, such that an expensive and time-consuming procedure would be more easily done, with considerable monetary savings. Now if you want to sever off a lot or two on your waterfront property to give to the kids or perhaps sell off to make ends meet, this sounds like a helluva idea. Should the plan go through (and in every likelihood, it will), it will also make some lakefront areas more appealing to developers, in some cases spelling the difference between 'forget it' and 'nice little profit.' But to others, it could represent the removal of a check-andbalance that could lead to a lot more lakes getting filled up with starter castles. What we have here is the classic environment-vs-development
debate rearing its ugly head once again. Way back when . . . just shortly after amalgamation about the turn of the millennium, the new townships formed were required to draft Official Plans that would guide development and such for the next millennium (in theory at least). The authors at the time (ie planners and councillors) did make one very bold decision when writing up these plans. They decided that if they were going to err, they were going to err on the side of the environment, putting in place restrictions such as setbacks from waterfronts, minimum lot size and frontage, stuff like that. It was a pretty bold move, considering that only decades before, the rules were far less stringent and yes, there were those who argued against it, saying that it would hamper development. The louder voices however, argued that protecting our most valuable resource, our waterbodies, for future generations outweighed the temporary benefits of jobs building subdivisions and such. But the pendulum seems to be swinging back towards lessening
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the rules, and "streamlining" the development process to attract more of it, at least in the Frontenac County area. For example, Frontenac County has decided it's a good idea to combine the economic development and planning departments in an effort to make things simpler and easier for development. It will no doubt do that. But at what cost? Planning, by its very nature, acts as a check/balance on irresponsible development by saying "no, you can't do that there" and "if you want to do that there, you must . . ." Economic development, by its very nature, has but one criterion - profit. It's not that profit in itself is necessarily a bad thing. But along with the potential for profit often comes greed - and that is a bad thing. Now it probably isn't likely Central Frontenac's little change will lead to a rush of development on its own, but you have to ask yourself "what's next?" History suggests that when you whittle down regulations little by little, eventually there will come a tipping point from which there is no return.
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Frontenac Gazette - Thursday, December 1, 2016
Keep holiday revelry safe and off the roads
Editorial – As the Ontario Provincial Police kicak off their annual Festive Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (RIDE) campaign, the importance of avoiding any instance of getting behind the wheel while intoxicated is underscored – and alcohol isn’t the only inebriant that should keep you off the road. In 2015 alone, the OPP investigated 65 collisions where a drug-impaired driver was determined as the primary cause of the crash. This year, a further 59 collisions found the same factor as the root cause. And with 35 people having already died so far in 2016 due to alcohol and/or drug related collisions, the OPP is “determined to dispel the myth that driving while high on drugs cannot be detected by police,� the organization said. OPP offices receive training as ‘Drug Recognition Evaluators,’ which gives them both the tools and the authority to detect drug-impaired drivers. Through their Festive RIDE campaign, the OPP will be looking for drivers under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, and advise drivers to remember that it is not only illegal drugs that can impair one’s ability to drive – prescription medications can often have side effects that affect the ability to drive, and many medications themselves can do the same, particularly prescribed narcotics and pain-killers. And the easiest way to prevent impaired driving is to never operate a vehicle after drinking alcohol or taking drugs – prescription or otherwise. Additionally, anyone with concerns a driver may be impaired is advised to call 911 and report the driver. For those who may have celebrated with more adult beverages than they intended, the solution is equally as easy, thanks to Operation Red Nose is in full swing here in Kingston. Every Friday and Saturday until Christmas, and on December 22, 23 and 31, the service will drive clients home in their own vehicles free of charge (though they do accept donations, which admirably benefit local youth literacy programs). So now, perhaps more than any other time of year, there are no excuses for impaired driving, and the OPP will be out and active to ensure any impaired drivers on the road are properly dealt with. That’s not only good to know for all of us on the road this holiday season, but also fair warning to anyone who thinks they are above the law when it comes to impaired driving. Let’s try to make this season as safe and happy as we possibly can, Kingston! Cheers!
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