Dear editor:
Is that all we have to offer?
As a young resident who moved to Port McNeill in 2007, I was disappointed on Feb. 9 to hear Mayor Gerry Furney being interviewed on CBC about the towns decreasing population — 4.5 per cent; the highest on Vancouver Island — and continually referring to the town as “a logging camp.”
There is no denying Port McNeill’s economy is industry based, and this is the main reason new workers are drawn here.
However, as I have seen over the years with an overwhelming number of friends and co-workers, there is no reason to stay.
Furney also blamed the decreasing population on the radical anti-forestry and anti-mining campaigns, none of which have been very prevalent on the North Island.
The real reason is we have an out of touch mayor and a town that has no vision and absolutely no draw for new, younger residents.
Mayor Furney and the older residents of Port McNeill who continually vote him in and don’t want change should realize that without change this town’s population will continue to decrease, predominantly in new and young residents, no matter how the industry is doing.
Promoting Port McNeill and the North Island in a in a new light is key, and not referring to your town as a “logging camp” on a national radio interview would be a good start.
Ben McGibbon
Port McNeill