Art Noonan, a Summerside native who moved back to the Island in 1998 after 36 years away, added his voice to the conversation when discussion started about high-rises on the waterfront.
“My concern is this little area right beside where we are standing right now. From what I understand there is a portion that looks like they will put high rise condos on the waterfront and that will take away the view of the harbour.
“I’m alright with the rest of the plan, I just want the harbour to maintain the way it is.”
Peter Holman spoke on behalf of the Summerside historical society, saying they are concerned about development in the city.
“We’re very much in support development. However, there is a place for it, and there are places it shouldn’t be.
“We are concerned about the development on what we have left of our water front. It is our position that we would like to see what little space we have left, left as it is. Anything south of Heather Moyse Drive, in the spaces between the ports, should be left as it is.
“You can build whatever you want on the north side of the road. Fill your boots.”
Art Noonan, a Summerside native who moved back to the Island in 1998 after 36 years away, added his voice to the conversation when discussion started about high-rises on the waterfront.
“My concern is this little area right beside where we are standing right now. From what I understand there is a portion that looks like they will put high rise condos on the waterfront and that will take away the view of the harbour.
“I’m alright with the rest of the plan, I just want the harbour to maintain the way it is.”
Peter Holman spoke on behalf of the Summerside historical society, saying they are concerned about development in the city.
“We’re very much in support development. However, there is a place for it, and there are places it shouldn’t be.
“We are concerned about the development on what we have left of our water front. It is our position that we would like to see what little space we have left, left as it is. Anything south of Heather Moyse Drive, in the spaces between the ports, should be left as it is.
“You can build whatever you want on the north side of the road. Fill your boots.”
While others shared Noonan and Holman’s concern about preserving the view of the harbour front, there were those who fully supported the plan like Sean and Caley Aylward.
“I’m a fan of Summerside deciding to do something for themselves. This city is dying and I think people need to come to terms with that, especially when we’re talking about things for 50, 60, 70 years ago, because that’s just not the reality now.
“Downtown is dead and there are little tiny pockets of people who are trying to do better and revitalize it, and this plan will actually help,” said Caley.
Sean added, “It shows that an important part is getting a developers, and appealing to them with a city that is confident in itself. They need a city that’s got a plan for what they want to do and shows stability in the market place.
“You’re not going to invest millions of dollars here if you’re not sure what you’re going to run into. This plan gives a clear indication of where we want to go, and that’s what’s important, as a business owner and as a father who lives in the downtown.”
Caley continued, “I think people are missing the point that when you don’t develop on the water, those pockets die. In the plan they’ve shown that if they’re just open green spaces, nobody uses them and sadly that’s the case for other cities in our region.”
