Dear Editor
I am deeply disappointed with the Ashcroft Mayor and Council during the March 28 Council meeting who unanimously supported Councillor Durksen to visit Clinton and to evaluate how the K-12 program is running since the School District may be considering closing Ashcroft Elementary School.
Instead of going through the motions and giving up to the status quo, here are some of the questions Mayor and Council should be concerned about in my opinion:
- Council to be more interested in examining why is Ashcroft Elementary closing!
- Why is there not any new influx of young families into Ashcroft?
- What kind of employment losses could be a result of Ashcroft Elementary closing? ie: support staff, Teachers?
- Why do many residents past and present send their children outside the school district boundaries for their childs K-12 education for example Kamloops, and or home schooling?
- What needs to be done within the community to entice families to move into the area?
- What kind of new employment opportunities, and employers could be brought into this area so that families would desire to move to Ashcroft?
- Why have local houses and empty business locations still sitting either unsold or un-leased?
- Why have several local businesses closed?
I have lived and worked in Ashcroft for eight years and I have only heard rhetoric on proposed new businesses coming into town with no definitive start dates, while in the meantime I have only seen job loses, residents being laid off, children being withdrawn from the local schools, the hospital losing doctors and restricting Emergency Room hours of operation, families moving out of Ashcroft and businesses closing.
In this up coming Municipal election I hope people evaluate this current Mayor and Council for not what they promise to do, but what have they done! Then perhaps vote for who will work their butts off to promote growth, and business opportunities instead of giving up to the status quo of doing nothing!
Todd K. Mcleod
Ashcroft