Dear Sirs and Mesdames,
I, together with my family, often drive on Hwy 24 in the winter to reach Sun Peaks; occasionally we camp at Lac des Roches in the summer. A few weekends ago, we stopped at the Lac des Roches rest area, noticed some colourful flyers attached to a post, and took one to read. At first I believed this to be some sort of joke, left over from April 1st, but now realize that it’s anything but! Unfortunately, it’s what city people call progress.
I understand that there is a desire and need for recreational development and that others may want us to share our pristine environment – fair enough. I also understand that, no matter where development happens and how little, there will likely always be some form of opposition – no one, including myself, is completely immune from the NIMBY effect. People don’t like change, especially if it affects their immediate surroundings, be it perception or not.
Having said that, I do believe it to be a shame if Lac des Roches has to sustain such a (mega) development. Gone would be the tranquility for which we visit the lake, the very reasons we don’t visit Shushwap Lake and the like. Although it would be unreasonable and selfish to oppose any development at Lac des Roches (don’t forget that every home or business there was once “new” development), I am of the opinion that a development the size of “Imagine” is an aberration that should not be permitted in its current proposed form. While some landholders may benefit through increased land values and therefore welcome “Imagine”, it is essentially short-term thinking. A crowd that we have chosen to avoid by moving to the country, such as Lac des Roches, will replace the crowd that now visits the lake.
I do wish the Friends of Lac des Roches very well in their endeavours. Hopefully, they will be successful in stopping this project or, at the very least, modifying it substantially to fit in with the lakes’ infrastructure and sustainable rate of growth.