Editorial — Was it an endorsement for Canadian Tire?

July 9, 2014 · 0 Comments

One of the interesting things about elections, such as the one we had at the Provincial level last month, is trying to extract the real significance of what went on, from multiple perspectives.
Last month’s Provincial election provided lots of such proverbial food for thought, including locally in Dufferin-Caledon.
But the vote in Bolton, we believe, carries certain added significance.
As most of us know, arguably the hottest issue in Bolton these days is the massive development of Canadian Tire that’s currently being constructed in the area of Healey Road and Coleraine Drive. It’s no secret that many in the community are opposed to the development, although their exact problem with it is a little hard to figure out. No matter, in last month’s campaign, Green party candidate Karren Wallace was quick to embrace the position of the opponents.
Opposition to this development has come from a very vocal group to be sure. But the size of this opposition has been something of a question. We have suspected all along that it’s not very large, certainly falling short of representing a majority of residents. We would submit the election results bear this out.
Wallace was instrumental in the successful fight to block a proposed massive aggregate operation in Melancthon Township a couple of years ago, and her efforts paid off handsomely, as she did well in the polls in that part of the riding, winning six of nine. But when it came to the Bolton totals, Wallace was in fourth place, about four percentage points behind New Democrat Rehya Yazbek.
Granted, there were a lot of other issues facing the voters of Bolton when they went to the polls June 12.
But like we stated above, we think these numbers are yet another indication most people in Bolton (the silent majority, if you will) are not opposed to this Canadian Tire development.
There is a lot to be said for having such a large and well respected Canadian corporation making such an investment in the community, building on lands that have been set aside for some years for just this kind of development. And the Canadian Tire facility is one of several projects going on right now in the area, involving the local economy and the efficient movement of traffic and goods.
It is, alas, not possible to please everyone, but we believe the community as a whole is going to be pleased with the results in this case.