Dear Editor:
This letter is to express our support for the ideas put forth by one of the community members at the Meeting of the Whole (June 9) against the current plan to clean up Mannion Bay. We regret that we were unable to attend the meeting, as it may not have represented the range of users of, and opinions about, the Bay. We are among the very many responsible recreational boat owners with a mooring buoy in the bay who are also friends of Mannion Bay.
While we think the idea of cleaning up the bay has merit, we wonder what “clean” actually means. Does it mean testing and requiring repair of malfunctioning septic fields to help reduce the fecal coliform counts in the bay? Does it mean removing derelict boats and others that don’t belong to residents of Bowen Island? If this is the intent of the plan put forth by the Friends of Mannion Bay and the Municipality of Bowen Island, then it is absolutely incumbent upon us to proceed in a cost-effective manner. (We wonder if spending thousands of dollars to remove a few derelict boats is a good use of taxpayer money.) If it means moving out the very small handful of Bowen residents who live aboard boats in Mannion Bay, we respectfully disagree.
We believe they belong here, contribute to the community, and indeed, have helped us when our boat came off its mooring during a storm (and we are also aware of other Good Samaritan instances.) While some of the reported behaviours of some who may (or may not) reside on boats in the Bay are unacceptable, the plan to remove a very few residents seems a particularly poor use of scarce municipal finances, and a punishment exceeding the alleged crimes. We, as a community, are much better than that: at least we hope so, for that is why we moved here.
We look forward to being part of a productive community dialogue and actions that support the well-being and happiness of all residents of Bowen Island. Any plan for the Bay must encompass the legitimate use of it by responsible, tax-paying, resident recreational boat owners who moor there.
Respectfully,
Leah Walker and Judson Berry, also friends of Mannion Bay
