These past few weeks I have been questioned as to why I voted down the former amendment to the zoning bylaw for the property at 134 Cowichan Lake Rd. in Lake Cowichan in August. Before making a decision that will affect our community and future councils after me I needed more information and I should have stated that at that meeting.
Please know that this was absolutely not to stop badly-needed medical professionals from coming to practice in our community; it was to amend a zoning bylaw. I did ask immediately after the meeting if we could bring this back as soon as possible with more information.
My concerns and concerns of several residents were traffic congestion with the number of visits to this site, parking and the height of the fence fronting the main thoroughfare by the driveway and I felt we needed a wording change in the re-zoning bylaw before moving ahead.
I was also reminded by some residents that there are already two empty and available medical office spaces within the town. And, on further investigation by our staff we learned that the Kaatza Health Unit is considered a safe space for Primary Health Care to practice. As the clinic is only open four days a week now, perhaps that could be expanded to five or six days a week if more Nurse Practitioners were available.
The aftermath of character assassinations of decision makers on social media regarding this issue was deeply disturbing when those commenting on social media are not privy to all the facts of a complicated case and of the rules that govern municipal councils.
My process for making decisions is to gather information from all sources and look at all sides of an issue before making an important decision that will affect our community as a whole. Critical thinking is a very important process for me when tough decisions are required and that is what I have always put into practice.
Carolyne Austin, councillor
Town of Lake Cowichan
