More thought and creativity might result in better use of lands
To the Expositor:
The Little Current waterfront has undergone major redevelopment over the past few years and councils are to be commended for their efforts in this task.
Recently, the boathouses of the OPP and MNR were declared surplus by Infrastructure Ontario and the buildings removed, a marked visual improvement to the area.
However, it was reported in The Expositor that the sites are being back filled with rock and then presumably sold. NEMI has for some time indicated its desire to purchase the particular site of OPP boathouse to complete its waterfront infrastructure and presumably this will occur.
A plaque was erected by NEMI sometime ago at the OPP boathouse site indicating its significance to the history of Little Current as it was the site of the ferry docks giving access to the Island until the swing bridge was open to vehicular traffic in 1945. Does Infrastructure Ontario have the right to fill in this historic site? The mayor has offered his support on the basis it will be “cheaper” for the town to finish their docks should they acquire the property.
It would appear that very little thought or planning has gone into development of this site by council or administration. Would a railing around the site, or perhaps a footbridge over it, be more costly than filling the hole with rock and then decking it? Has this been costed, has a planner looked at the options which may be more aesthetically pleasing? Does this site not have equal historic value to the waterfront as the first lighthouse in Little Current that council recognized and reconstructed at the east end of the docks?
More thought and creativity may result in better use of these lands and retain important history that council has acknowledged.
James Bousquet
Little Current
