Jul 26 2006 http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/ EDITORIAL
Vernon’s cultural complex committee may be without work, but the fate of the proposal is still uncertain. Council did little to instill confidence in anyone interested in cultural services in the community Monday. The volunteer committee that pursued the matter was disbanded, but the politicians gave no details as to the next step. There were some sketchy details from Coun. Jack Gilroy about a cultural district with greenspaces and walkways. But there was absolutely no concrete information about what will happen with the museum and the art gallery. There’s been some suggestion that the two agencies could relocate to the former Coldstream Hotel site in conjunction with commercial space and residential housing units. It’s possible that was the subject during an in-camera session Monday, but all council would state was the discussions revolved around land, and, as a result, were confidential. Giving the cultural committee its walking papers made sense because its extremely narrow mandate has been fulfilled. It looked at the prospect of bringing the museum, library and art gallery under one roof. It didn’t have the authority to consider options such as housing units. But such options have to be considered if there is any chance of meeting the cultural needs of the community while not placing further financial burden on taxpayers. The next step is clearly in council’s hands, but based on the lack of details Monday, residents are left wondering if the city actually has a sense of direction.
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