Just last week, Oakville News and other media outlets had photos of Mayor Burton and council members crossing the new Rainbow crosswalk at Kerr St and Lakeshore Rd. It was good to see that the mayor made time in his busy schedule to support equality. In fact, from various other photos on social media, it appears that there was time for several walk-throughs to ensure that they got good photos. So it was a success, and it all looks great.
Now, if you have a coffee while reading this, you might be thinking, “I wonder if the mayor and councillors walked the neighbourhood to see how the rest of the area looks?” Surely, they could have walked 70 metres and seen this beauty of an intersection at Kerr and John, where southbound traffic has to dodge this ever-enlarging depression. Cyclists are forced to veer around this and similar crosswalks, often going into traffic to avoid these sunken areas.
Now, if the mayor had taken the time to walk up to Rebecca, he surely would have been shocked to see a bit of shabby maintenance. I can’t believe that this is part of the mayor’s “most liveable city” platform. Why would he want a photo op with something like this where you might twist an ankle just trying to cross the road!
Then again, if they walked to Bond St., where people with disabilities and their caregivers have to cross an intersection like this, they would have seen this crosswalk.
This pothole was so significant that it got a lovely orange painted circle around it last year. This year, the paint is faded, and now the hole still unfilled is broader and deeper.
This is but a short section of one street in Kerr Village, Oakville News readers could easily find similar issues in their neighbourhoods.
The town seems to have endless money for special fencing, and new docks used less than six months a year, and this year, are not fully occupied. Let’s not forget that at Tannery Park they took away parking spaces from the taxpaying public and reserved them for the few who only occasionally use the docks.
Ballparks that get used barely 60 days per year, if you’re lucky, get all new fencing. It seems that it would be better to spend taxpayers' money on projects that serve the greater good of all residents, not just limited groups.
The town has no problem raising taxes and asking for more money; therefore, let’s challenge them to do better and use our money more wisely.
There is nothing wrong with a good photo op like last week’s photos, and we’d love to see them all back, going across the new, well-maintained crosswalks around Kerr Village.
We’re all waiting for that.
