Wasting $60 million for glorified gymnasium a bad idea
It was funny to read how city councilor Michael Malley was pushing for a $60 million wellness centre in the city a couple of weeks back.
Miramichiers need to blow $60 million of tax money on a glorified gymnasium the way they need another hole in their heads.
And lets face it. Malley’s not exactly known for backing the right horse in projects like this.
A few years ago, Malley was the Conservative member for Miramichi Baie du Vin and a big supporter of the French Fort Cove Eco Centre when it was still only an overpriced pipe dream and not the tax-draining money-pit it’s become today.
At least back then we still had the mills as revenue generators on the river, though everybody knew they weren’t going to last. Now we have nothing.
I can still remember Malley boasting how the proposed Eco Centre, still in the blueprint stages, would make Miramichi the Hub of New Brunswick. I laughed so hard at that it hurt. But when I heard the multi-million dollar price tag, I wasn’t in a laughing mood anymore.
The Eco-Centre turned into a millstone around the necks of Miramichi taxpayers pretty fast. The people that run the place have to go begging just to keep their doors open.
Now Malley wants to drop $60 million to duplicate services we already have on the river like rinks and swimming pools and gyms? It’s friggin’ unbelievable.
But what’s even more unbelievable is to hear how the other councillors around the table cheered him on, saying how it was going to bring business to the river, bring the Canada Games to the river, bring blah-blah this and blah-blah that to the river.
Ah, it’s nice to dream alright. Gives you a nice, warm feeling inside.
But here are the cold, hard facts of the matter. The only thing blowing $60 million on this nonsense is gonna do, besides make the city $60 million poorer, is nothing. It’s not going to bring business. It’s not going to bring the Canada Games, or any games for that matter.
I’m not being negative. I’m being realistic.
The Eco-Centre was supposed to bring all sorts of great things to the river too, remember? Business and conventions and this and that, but what have we gotten back for all the millions we’ve put into it? A whole lotta nothing.
Keep your money in you pockets, councillors. Sixty million bucks is not chump change and Miramichi is not a rich city. We did OK once, we got by, but those days are gone, and I’d bet we’ll never see their like again. There are hard times ahead. To pretend otherwise is foolish.
And if you’re so intent on getting people out to exercise, why not waive the user fees on the existing facilities?
Don’t have enough space? I hear there’s an Eco-Centre sitting around unused. Why not cram a few treadmills and exercise bikes in there? You can call it the Reco-Centre. Yeah. The Reco-Centre has a nice ring to it.
But wasting $60 million?
Grow up.
Miramichiers need to blow $60 million of tax money on a glorified gymnasium the way they need another hole in their heads.
And lets face it. Malley’s not exactly known for backing the right horse in projects like this.
A few years ago, Malley was the Conservative member for Miramichi Baie du Vin and a big supporter of the French Fort Cove Eco Centre when it was still only an overpriced pipe dream and not the tax-draining money-pit it’s become today.
At least back then we still had the mills as revenue generators on the river, though everybody knew they weren’t going to last. Now we have nothing.
I can still remember Malley boasting how the proposed Eco Centre, still in the blueprint stages, would make Miramichi the Hub of New Brunswick. I laughed so hard at that it hurt. But when I heard the multi-million dollar price tag, I wasn’t in a laughing mood anymore.
The Eco-Centre turned into a millstone around the necks of Miramichi taxpayers pretty fast. The people that run the place have to go begging just to keep their doors open.
Now Malley wants to drop $60 million to duplicate services we already have on the river like rinks and swimming pools and gyms? It’s friggin’ unbelievable.
But what’s even more unbelievable is to hear how the other councillors around the table cheered him on, saying how it was going to bring business to the river, bring the Canada Games to the river, bring blah-blah this and blah-blah that to the river.
Ah, it’s nice to dream alright. Gives you a nice, warm feeling inside.
But here are the cold, hard facts of the matter. The only thing blowing $60 million on this nonsense is gonna do, besides make the city $60 million poorer, is nothing. It’s not going to bring business. It’s not going to bring the Canada Games, or any games for that matter.
I’m not being negative. I’m being realistic.
The Eco-Centre was supposed to bring all sorts of great things to the river too, remember? Business and conventions and this and that, but what have we gotten back for all the millions we’ve put into it? A whole lotta nothing.
Keep your money in you pockets, councillors. Sixty million bucks is not chump change and Miramichi is not a rich city. We did OK once, we got by, but those days are gone, and I’d bet we’ll never see their like again. There are hard times ahead. To pretend otherwise is foolish.
And if you’re so intent on getting people out to exercise, why not waive the user fees on the existing facilities?
Don’t have enough space? I hear there’s an Eco-Centre sitting around unused. Why not cram a few treadmills and exercise bikes in there? You can call it the Reco-Centre. Yeah. The Reco-Centre has a nice ring to it.
But wasting $60 million?
Grow up.
posted by Street Wise Guy | 4:27 PM
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