Letter to the Editor

I would like to clarify some misconceptions perpetrated by Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett in a recent letter in the Daily Townsman about the City of Cranbrook’s handling of the Development Cost Charges (DCCs) issue.

Contrary to MLA Bennett’s statement that certain unnamed councillors were “scrapping the DCCs” the city still has a DCC bylaw and has had one since June 2004 and amended in 2010.

What was “scrapped” was a new DCC bylaw that council put forward to the provincial government and later withdrew and rightfully so because it was deficient as the city chief administrative officer acknowledged in an earlier letter to the Townsman.

It’s also important to keep in mind that when council unanimously approved the deficient bylaw it did so on the advice of city staff that had recommended it for approval. In other words, councillors acted in good faith on the advice of our professional staff. We did no wrong and in the future we may prepare another DCC bylaw for Victoria and hopefully we’ll get it right and it will be approved. This is how the political process works and no one knows this better than MLA Bennett. In light of this I have to reluctantly conclude that MLA Bennett is not sincere in his criticism of council and is simply making mischief.

(An earlier version of this letter appeared in the Townsman, but was not published in its entirety.)

Gerry Warner,

Cranbrook City Councillor  

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