Letters, July 27

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/07/2023 (1143 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Time to get on board

Re: Too close to a tipping point (Think Tank, July 26)

I was shocked to see a disclaimer at the end of F.D. Flams article. Apparently, the views expressed in this well-researched and alarming article “do not reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners,” the company which employs Flam.

Really? Is it then the opinion of the editors that we are not fast approaching a 1.5-degree increase in global temperature or are they taking issue with the fact that this summer’s climate catastrophes may represent what one scientist calls flickering — possible portents of an even more rapidly approaching, temperature-driven tipping point.

If that’s the case then the editorial board and company referenced really need to do some serious climate research of their own, because their “opinion” is clearly not keeping pace with science. While the timing and details may be difficult to predict, the fact that this planet is, in geological terms, barrelling toward a tipping point on a cloud of human-generated CO2 is not a matter of “opinion.” Nor is it up for debate.

Erna Buffie

Winnipeg

 

Consider the source

Re: Police games send wrong message (Think Tank, July 26)

On reading James Wilt’s article I couldn’t help but reflect on a recent Free Press editorial describing what it looks for in letters to the editor. It said that letters should be civil and not malign an individual.

It appears, however, that a writer can identify a group of people and malign them by blaming them for all society’s ills. It’s called carping: “to find fault or complain querulously or unreasonably by niggling in criticism.” If you read the very fine print at the bottom of the article you would have seen that Mr. Wilt is a member of the group, Winnipeg Police Cause Harm.

The premise that this group name suggests is a delusion put forth by people who have an exaggerated sense of their own intellect.

Stan Tataryn,

Retired Winnipeg police officer

Winnipeg

 

Poor state of health

Re: Doctor task force seeks vast change grounded in reality (July 26)

Tom Brodbeck’s opinion piece provides a glimpse of a road map to better health care; one recommended by ER doctors — the professionals that provide care at one of the busiest portals to our hospital system.

Sadly, our current Progressive Conservative government has promulgated changes that have had the opposite effect on health care. Absent a change in governance and the funding to carry out appropriate change we can expect at best no improvement, and at worst a further decline in the quality of health care in Manitoba.

Tom Pearson

Winnipeg

 

Embrace those with vision

Re: Time for a plan on rail lands (Think Tank, July 23)

In the early ’70s, when I was studying at the U of M in the master of city planning program, the redevelopment of the CP East Yards was a topic of discussion.

Fifty years later not much has changed; more discussion but no movement. Everyone agrees that rail relocation would be of huge benefit to the city and studies have been done over the years, but evidently not backed by people with a serious resolve to move from study to action. I believe that mega projects of this nature need a champion.

Thomas R. Deacon, mayor of Winnipeg, championed the construction of an aqueduct from Shoal Lake to Winnipeg. Duff Roblin, premier of Manitoba, championed the construction of the Red River Floodway. Izzy and Gail Asper championed the Human Rights Museum. Who knows what might have happened to these ideas had not these individuals, with their vision and fortitude, pushed them through to fruition?

Mr. Bellamy draws a parallel between the East Yards and The Forks. I was on the original planning team for The Forks, as engineering consultant, when the area was an abandoned rail yard. At the time there were letters to the editor in this newspaper which said: “The Forks? Where is that? No one will ever go there.”

Were it not for the vision and perseverance of people like Etienne Gaboury, architect, and Garry Hilderman, landscape architect and planner, The Forks might not be the success it has become.

Daniel Burnham, a great American architect said: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably will not themselves be realized”. Let’s stop the abstract studies and task the three levels of government, the railway and the community to create a grand (but practical and realistic) plan of action to redevelop the East Yards in stages. All we need is a champion to make it happen.

Robert Foster

Winnipeg

 

A whole-hearted “YES” and thanks for Brent Bellamy’s Time for a plan on rail lands. It is time, even past time, to begin on this project that will, could, should transform Winnipeg. Bellamy’s pragmatic approach is the right way to begin.

I believe it is entirely possible in real time, but only if we begin now. We must start a “comprehensive analysis” that opens to an actionable step by step plan. I’d vote for the redevelopment of the rail lands over broadening Kenaston any day of the week.

Cathy Campbell

Winnipeg

 

Rail plan too big for city

I am writing in response to Mr. Bellamy’s suggestion that the CP yards site be relocated. If I understand it, he suggests it would be a way to provide in-fill development as well as reducing the risk associated with running the main lines through Winnipeg. On its surface, this looks like a great idea.

I can readily relate to the concerns about the risks of running both the main lines through downtown Winnipeg. I worked about a block from the CN main line for many years. Since the Lac Mégantic tragedy opened all of our eyes to the risks, there wasn’t a workday that passed when I wasn’t concerned about a potential explosion coming right through my office window. However, while laudable, unless this is a federal/provincial initiative, it is completely beyond the financial depth of the city to undertake this.

The alternative main lines would need to be identified, acquired, and constructed. The existing CP and CN land would have to be acquired, as well as possibly, their shops in Weston and Fort Rouge. The trackage and infrastructure would have to be completely removed. While expensive and time-consuming, it can be done.

The problem is how to subsequently redevelop the land in a financially feasible manner. These properties have been used by the railway for almost 150 years, and the environmental remediation costs alone would be massive. Without a clean bill of health, potential owners wouldn’t want to build on the land, and lenders would be foolish to take it as security for a mortgage, as they could be potentially responsible for any further remediation.

Overall, this would require a very long-term view and, potentially, a multi-billion dollar price tag. As usual, the devil is in the details, and the decision requires much deeper pockets than those of City of Winnipeg taxpayers.

Ray Kohanik

Winnipeg