Dear Editor:
Like many others, I was horrified by the illustration in the Aug. 29 Advertiser of Pearle Hospitality’s planned condo development on the south bank of the Grand River in Elora.
How could anyone imagine that a development of this scale could possibly be in keeping with the village character of Elora? What were our elected representatives thinking (were they thinking)?
What we are witnessing is a travesty – our township council selling out the community to the highest bidder. I suppose we should have seen this coming. There’s just too much money involved.
If these plans are realized, Elora will cease to be a village and, inevitably, will take on the characteristics of a suburb, in which urban values predominate: the natural environment becomes an inconvenience, an impediment to development, at best, a mere backdrop. What matters are efficient roads systems for commuters, ample parking for all their cars, and robust security (for while they’re away). Above all, the dominant, modern urban value: profit trumps principle.
Look around at other more developed suburbs within the GTA orbit. Is this really what we want to see for Elora’s future? And, the ultimate irony: once the transformation from scenic village to suburb is complete, and the village character lost forever, who will want to visit Elora then?
Jim Zimmerman,
Inverhaugh