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Letters to the Editor for the week of May 31st, 2012

Concerts aren't free
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Guess what? Those concerts ain't free and represent tax dollars that could otherwise be spent on actually driving business to Whistler rather than just (wasting it) on stupid bands that people couldn't care less about seeing.

It might sound good walking by, but that's about it. Why not use half the RMI money currently being pissed away to promote relevant bands that people will actually book a weekend trip to come see, AND pay money for a ticket?

People just point and snicker or have a nostalgic '80s big hair moment with the current cheesy band lineups. Whistler ends up shooting itself in the foot when events like Jazz On The Mountain comes to town and gets screwed because there is no precedent for ticketed events.

Save the "free" concerts for local musicians who need the exposure and will actually get up and play for free! Open mic night at the plaza!

Another big question is why isn't Whistler Olympic Park being utilized for a big festival event that would attract thousands like Pemberton Music Festival did?

The municipality needs to get out of the event promotion business and not be a roadblock for the expert promoters who know how to put on shows that people will pay good money to come up and see.

Tom Landers

Whistler

Traffic management on #99

On Saturday, May 20, my wife and I were among several thousand people who were held up for about 1.5 hours by a head-on collision close to the Daisy Lake Dam. Our sympathy goes to the victims of this accident, however, the purpose of this letter is to examine traffic management procedures following accidents of this type.

I have lived and driven in many countries and provinces and it always seems to take longer for the RCMP to get traffic flowing after an accident on Highway 99 than it does in other jurisdictions.

Whether this observation is valid or not, sensible traffic control is obviously required to manage the effect of serious accidents on #99, because there is no alternative route.

Traffic control should give consideration to the volume of traffic flowing in each direction. On Saturday this didn't happen — the radio reported regularly that the lineup southbound was five to 10 minutes while the northbound lineup was over an hour and a half. Obviously the people controlling traffic were giving equal time to each direction without consideration to volume. This probably generated losses for Whistler merchants, and others, of tens of thousands of dollars.

But even this aspect of traffic mismanagement isn't my major concern.

At Rubble Creek, just below the accident site, #99 runs through the remains of the 1855 Barrier slide and it has always been recognized that eventually there will be another large slide in this area.

For this reason all residents of the area below the Barrier were relocated in the early 1980s and slide warning signs were placed on the highway. In a recent paper the Geologic Survey of Canada noted that 18 per cent of all landslide deaths in Canada have occurred in the Sea to Sky corridor, and that there is still a landslide hazard potential.

Of special concern are high magnitude, low frequency landslides at locations such as Jane Creek, Cheekeye Fan and Rubble Creek. Appropriate management of these risks represents an important challenge.

Trapping several thousand people for about two to three hours in the middle of a high risk slide area is not smart.

Those who are responsible for traffic management after an accident should consider all of the factors — relative traffic flows and slide risk. If there had been a moderate quake on Saturday, followed by a slide, we would have experienced a Titanic-sized disaster.

Rupert Merer

Whistler

Giant success

Whistlerites and visitors once more flocked to the Giant Used Book Sale on the May long weekend to stock up on reading material.

And they generously parted with a total of $4,545.52 for the Friends of the Library to use for Whistler library needs.

In the past, the Friends have funded a total of 22 chairs and stools for the library, laptop bar, the coffee machine, and various programs such as the Film Movement Series and Youth Book Club.

The sale could not go on without a group of dedicated volunteers who gathered, sorted, transported and sold books. They know who they are, but to let everyone else know what a great crew we have, thanks go out to: Maureen Chaddock, Moe and John Richmond, Jesse Pendygrasse, Lil Goldsmid, Verity and Gary Pringle, Alison Hunter, Margi McGraw and George, Bill and Andree Janyk, Len Van Leeuwen, Rick, Sally, and Maddie Reid, Anne Townley, Marianna Orr, Kris Shoup, Betty Vogler, Audrey Mitterndorfer, Ophra Buckman, Karen Wanger, Chris Kennedy, Elly and Pat Johnston, and Pina Belperio. Huge thank yous also go out to IGA Marketplace for allowing us to hold the sale in front of the store, and to Nesters Market and TD Canada Trust for being collection depots. We could not do it without you.

Finally, thanks to all who so generously donated books, and the book lovers who came, saw, donated, and took away their summer reading. Until next time...

Jane Reid, Organizer

Whistler

Lovely Luau

We'd like to send out a special thanks to the following people who made Alphonse's Luau on May 20 a roaring success: Hubert, for creating the palm trees and giant umbrella bar; Jordan for roasting the pig and playing music along with bandmates in FOMO; Karen, Tom, and Dawn for playing music, Phil for music, sound, and the venue; John for the Cincinatti dance floor and the bar; Mike and Joe for coming all the way from Australia and Ottawa, respectively; Johnny Two Tank for the palm tree; and last, but not least, Shawn and Marian for exceptional team work.

Thanks to everyone else who came, danced, ate, drank, celebrated, and sent Al off to a higher and hopefully, better place.  

Ten Zowie, buddy.

The Luau Collective Committee via Carol Siblock

Mount Currie

Sensible sprinkling, please

My name is Bernie Peup, I have been a citizen in Whistler for about five years now.

Last summer season an issue in this town has really bothered me, the sprinklers around the village.

I am a taxi driver and was amazed to see that every night the sprinklers in the taxi loop come on at 1 a.m. at the exact time that the bars close and they can go until about 3 a.m.

During the watering, the sprinklers seem to be spraying water all over the walkways that our drunk pedestrians use to commute to McDonalds, 7-Eleven, home, bus stops etc. making them have to use the streets instead.

It is ridiculous that we need to water the grass during the two busiest hours of the night.

After reading an article in last year's Pique that Whistlerites use too much water per square capita I wrote a letter that got published called "sprinkler madness" highlighting my very valid argument, and I also included great solutions to that problem. I was satisfied that after my letter got published that someone who had the power of the sprinkler switch would agree with me and a solution would take place.

But here I am in the early summer of 2012 ,sitting in my cab at 1:30 a.m. on a Sunday night. The bars have just let out, the crowds are flocking home, hey it's even starting to drizzle a little, but the sprinklers are at work making sure to water the four square feet of grass we have in the taxi loop as well as all the walkways and roads (gotta water those roads, we just paved them last year, they gotta be clean).

This happens all the time. I'm tired of hearing girls scream, as they get wet without warning as they are leaving the village. Don't get me wrong I'm all up for a wet t-shirt contest, but do we really need to make sure that more drunk people walk in the streets at night to avoid sprinklers. Have we not learned our lesson on public safety? Do we need to see a dead body lying in the taxi loop to change how we use these sprinklers?

My solution is so simple, change the hours of watering; instead of 1-3 a.m. when the taxi loop is at its busiest make them come on at 4 to 6 a.m.

A few weeks ago, another article in the Pique about our water use being too high got published. We keep pointing fingers, but nobody wants to be part of the solution and I believe that you can finally put an end to these jokes.

We live in a rainforest!

If I were in charge of this town I would never turn the sprinklers on unless we had five days in a row with no rain. Grass is a tough sonofabitch! It's a survivor, just ask the grass on the lower parts of Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains that never get watered and stay green throughout the summer.

Leave the sprinklers off please and when we really do need them make sure they come on at after 3 a.m.

Bernie Peup, a common sense scientist

Whistler

Recognizing Youth Leadership

On May 4, 2012 The Interact Club of Pemberton (the youth branch of Rotary) hosted the Odd Squad at Pemberton Secondary School for both Pemberton and Mount Currie schools.

The presentations were a stark reminder of the deep and painful impact substance abuse can have on individuals, families and communities.

Bringing the Odd Squad to Pemberton was an Interact initiative and they worked hard to make it happen.

On behalf of the Winds of Change steering committee I would like to acknowledge the Pemberton Interact Club for taking a leadership role in increasing the awareness of addictions among their peers. Your efforts remind us all that leadership to improve community health and wellbeing can come from many different places.

Thank you!

Sheldon Tetreault

Chair, Winds of Change Steering Committee

One-dergarten creates awareness

Mrs. Lisa Smart's Kindergarten and Grade One combined class at Myrtle Philip Community school, affectionately known as the One-dergarten, has had a fun filled year of playing, learning and growing.

In this multi-age classroom, it has been particularly exciting to see the Grade 1 students take on the role of leaders. The peer mentoring from student to student has created a strong group of competent, independent young learners with an increased level of confidence.

That confidence inspired them to challenge the rest of the school to become more environmentally aware.

Starting in May the class chose nine ways they felt that they could be environmental stewards for the school. The class decided to implement an environmental challenge that takes place one day a week until the end of the school year.

Students decided to: reuse recycled items for art, plant flowers and grass on the school grounds, compost class lunches, bring litter free lunches, pick up garbage on the school grounds, have an almost-zero electricity day, do the Commuter Challenge (bus, bike, walk and carpool to school), have a no-paper day, and plant trees.

These inspirational young students then took their pitch to each of the other classrooms in the school, did a presentation explaining what might be involved in each day, and asked, "Do you accept our challenge?"

The answer was a resounding "yes," and the result has been a school guided by the positive influence of its youngest students.

One-dergarten challenges the whole community to adopt some of its ideas to create environmental awareness and be the change!

Jane Douglas

One-dergarten Education Assistant