Editorial: Speak up on how your recreation dollars will be spent

Twelve seniors walk into an open house and tell a handful of consultants that what the region really needs are cribbage halls in every community.

Consultants, wanting desperately to write something on those big easels they like to cart around with them everywhere, write down the input and take it back to the municipalities in Sturgeon County.

Next thing you know all your tax money is going to fund cribbage halls in every town and little Johnny is crying because the soccer fields have been converted to lawn bowling facilities.

Seniors are crafty that way. Back when they were young hippies they said “Don’t trust anyone over 30.” That’s because they knew what they were going to be like.

Now less you want this dystopian world where there are no lawns because we’ve all been told to get off them by “the seniors”, you’d best speak up on how your recreation needs should be met.

Morinville is holding an Open House Jan. 10 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Morinville Community Cultural Centre. It’s a drop-in thing so you can pop in, speak your mind, and pop out again in time for dinner.

There have been several open houses in the various communities within Sturgeon County. The project is looking at recreation on a regional level. That’s not just running and kicking balls – it includes artsy stuff and knitting – pretty much whatever people do on their down time.

They will be looking at the existing facilities in the municipalities, how much life is left in them (like our hockey rink) and then making recommendations on what types of facilities the communities will need and what community they will be needed in.

So if you think it is time for Morinville to have a pool for your kids or a pool hall for your teens, take 10 minutes and go tell them so. If you think it is time we had an arena with two sheets of ice, pop in and tell them so.

If you won’t take the time to pop in and bend the consultants’ ears, the seniors will. They will make the time and then it’s nothing but cribbage, lawn bowling and quite possibly shuffleboard. And then where will this community be?

Hopefully the seniors reading this realize I am being absurd to make a point. If only hockey parents attend these sessions then we may well have the Seniors Rendez-Vous levelled to the ground to make room for a second sheet of ice in a super arena.

The point is the message that gets back to the municipalities will be from the demographic or interest group that bother to make their voices heard.

Recreational needs come in all ages and interests. Take the time to attend the session, look at the pretty charts on the easels and make your thoughts known.

The session runs from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday night. I honestly have no idea how many seniors will be there but I hope we all show up.

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