Re: “Park board chair bemoans loss of PNE seat,” June 10.
Hastings Park is the second largest park in the City of Vancouver. Having at least one elected park board commissioner on the governing board makes sense. At a meeting this past week, all Vision councillors voted to eliminate the current parks board commissioner board member’s position on the Hastings Park/PNE board — essentially taking the park out of Hastings Park.
So much for Vision’s promise of increased accountability and a greener city.
I challenge all and any of the Vision councillors, including the mayor, to explain to Vancouver’s citizens how removing the park board commissioner from the board increases accountability and ensures effective stewardship of the Hastings Park/PNE Master Plan, which includes promoting green and community space. At this point it seems that the only advantage to having no park board representation is to be able to make unilateral decisions about the future of Hastings Park and the PNE with no public accountability.
Shame on Vision. And a shame for the residents of East Vancouver who seem to be losing one of the few green spaces left in the city.
Melina Auerbach, Vancouver
