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Letters to the Editor for the week of July 4th

Banners an eyesore? " I think that I shall never see a billboard lovely as a tree. Perhaps unless the billboards fall I'll never see a tree at all.
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IMAGE COURTESY OF THE RMOW

Banners an eyesore?

"I think that I shall never see a billboard lovely as a tree.  

Perhaps unless the billboards fall I'll never see a tree at all."

-Ogden Nash

This season, once again, there are brightly coloured banners attached to lamp standards throughout "Tiny Town."

Many people may find these artificial, trashy, and inappropriate for a world-class resort that promotes its pristine natural environment, while others may simply dislike the design choice and colours of this season's examples.  

At our attractive, new, permanent welcoming signage at Village Gate Boulevard, two banners with garish and unnatural colours are in close proximity and at the same height as a pair of Canadian flags, and I am unlikely the only Whistler resident to consider this offensive.

Further, many people may dislike all similar banners throughout our village, considering them to be ugly and unwanted assaults on the optic nerve.

Why plant attractive summer flowers at this entry to our village, while directly above there are two banners in highly artificial and garish colours?

While some may feel that our small community has many municipal employees doing studies of every kind at taxpayers' expense, perhaps we should add a "design policeperson" to our municipal staff in order to prevent the proliferation of unwanted and ugly banners festooned around our village.

For people who take vacations so they can admire banners and billboards, they are welcome to visit virtually any large city in the world.

For others, they may prefer unobscured views of trees, mountains, and the pristine beauty of our magnificent natural environment here in Whistler.  

Let's leave the "art" inside the Audain Art Museum. 

Doug Garnett // Whistler

Daylight Saving Time is the way to go

The B.C. government has a survey out to see if a change is desired in how we handle Daylight Saving Time at engage.gov.bc.ca/daylightsavingtime.

The dates of the time changes were last moved in 2005. One thing I have observed is that we all can enjoy more sunlight for far better spring skiing, something Whistler should take note of. 

The move to Daylight Saving was called the "Energy Policy Act" for a reason. Without the turning of the clocks ahead in spring, we lose daylight in the early hours of the morning. By changing, that effective hour of sunshine is moved to the afternoon, for our enjoyment.  Why turn the lights on if we don't need to?

In the change that occurred in 2005, something amazing happened in Whistler, and in my observation contributed a lot to the appeal of our resort and all winter sports.

The date of the spring change, turning the clocks forward, was moved from the first Sunday in April to the second Sunday in March, effectively enhancing the second half of March with a whole new and special appeal. We transferred that hour of sunlight from 6:00 to 7:00 a.m. to the afternoon. Now the snow begins to melt one hour later, after skiing we get to enjoy the village, and that added little bit of afternoon sun contributes to every aspect of our resort operation: grooming, search and rescue, and most importantly, the après-ski lifestyle.

When my friends from all over North America come here to snowmobile, I recommend coming after March 15 for the better sunlight. I have noticed spring break for schools is far better off with the daylight saving change and thus far more appealing and profitable. 

Changing back to regular Pacific Standard Time (PST) in the fall, it's the school kids in our lives that benefit the most.

On Dec. 20, this being one of the shortest days of the year, and that last day of school before Christmas, our children were still able to walk to school or catch the bus in daylight; and they were all home safely before dark. Sunrise that day was 8:05 a.m. and sunset and 4:16 p.m.  Had we not turned the clocks back, the school kids would be going to school in the dark.   

If we went to a permanent year-round Pacific Daylight Saving Time, (currently just our summer hours) we could just change the hours our kids go to school. Uploading skiers in the dark of morning has its benefits over downloading under the pressure of darkness falling early.  

Please let your opinion be known on the survey that closes on July 19.

Overall, Daylight Saving Time is best for the resort of Whistler. 

Lance Bright // Whistler