Editor:
Re: Distinct lack of neigbhourliness letter, Oct. 24 letters.
I find it very humorous that citizens like Bev Greenlaw have issues with revitalizing neighbourhoods. If she was that much in horror of new construction and demoliation perhaps she should have bought the house to protect her way of life.
I’m sure no one had a gun to the seller’s head when they sold it either. Bev, don’t point the finger at the buyer, please point it at the sons that pocketed the $1.2 million.
And one more thing, the buyer will probably increase the value of your house/lot as well for making a two-storey home next door. I’m sure you or your children will thank him when your/they sell your home.
If you have a problem with house sizes, call your newly elected mayor and see what he can do for you. Last I checked, you can’t build houses of any size without city approval.
Spare me the tears!
Parm Dhesi, Surrey
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I agree with letter writer Bev Greenlaw. I have seen the same thing happening here in White Rock. Anyone who has driven around the single-family home areas will have seen that, over the years, more and more of these large houses, that do not fit in with the character of White Rock, havebeen built. I have felt sympathy for the people who live in nearby houses and have wondered how long they will stay, and if it will just become a domino effect with old houses pulled down and these new oversized houses put up.
I lived in Richmond for many years and saw entire subdivisions destroyed.
Once those streets had smaller, one- and two-level houses with lovely established gardens. The streets were filled with the sound of children playing in their yards and playing street hockey. Now, these same streets are filled with oversized, grey “monster houses.” The gardens are gone, the children are gone, and the silence is deafening.
In the lead-up to the election, we heard a lot of criticism regarding over-development with regards to highrises, and rightly so, but what will our new mayor and council do to stop the destruction of White Rock neighbourhoods?
Building regulations need to be changed to limit the size of houses and ensure that they fit in with the character of our City by the Sea.
Hopefully, our new mayor and council are up to the task.
Lynne James, White Rock
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Three years ago… exactly the same situation.
And, after final inspection the owner of this new build constructed a connection from the auxiliary building to the main house, thus exceeding allowable square footage which the city has deemed illegal.
Since there has been no response by the owner to the city’s repeated notifications, it remains not only an invasive, out-of-place, sun-blocking, privacy-robbing eyesore, but an illegal build.
Carol Savage, Surrey