Victoria Adams

Gene Miller’s rambling article “Community is Perishable” seems incoherent to me; his commentary on the declining phase of urban life lacked both substance and analysis. Without getting into heavy-duty philosophy, I think most can agree that the space and time continuum is a paradox, reflecting both a temporal and eternal state, a limited and fathomless quality.

 

It seems to me that we’re living in a homo-sapien centered world—a modern technological age where there exist no limits to “growth” or “progress.” “Might makes right,” and the rule of law claims that “the rich are winners and entitled to get richer, whereas the poor are losers and deserve to become undeniably poorer.”

 

Cities, hubs of humanity, are designed to facilitate economic production and distribution by providing a range of public and private services to inhabitants:  jobs, housing, education, health care, transportation, justice, urban support and government services.

 

The landscape is filled with settlements of all sizes, shapes, and structures. A precious few have survived for centuries with little change in form or function. Many have been decimated in wars or damaged as a result of natural disasters. Others serve a time-limited or single-industry purpose. When their environment becomes soiled or unable to serve their masters profitably, they are abandoned.

 

Although the urban community as phenomenon has evolved differently over the globe, it survives the shifting tides of its life. It’s safe to say that not all tides lift all boats at the same time in each place. Some benefit from the rising tide—in protected harbours, where boats adapt to ebb and flow. Still others eschew the need to plan ahead and become overwhelmed, causing devastating consequences during the inevitable storms of change.

 

To suggest that our City, unlike other man-made agglomerations around the planet, should be immune to problems of poverty, pain, and social turmoil—sounds naïve, like wishful thinking. If Victoria resembles a “zombie apocalypse,” that “we need to get our streets back,” it begs the question, what should be done? Would placing an authoritarian at the helm with a few hired henchmen to eradicate vermin and vagrants ensure a happy-ever-after life in paradise?

 

Cities are not consumer products. Cities are not stamped with ‘best before dates” in order to be flogged to well-heeled tourists. Neither do they come with money-back guarantees demanded by affluent baby-boomers who purchase plots in downtown glass towers as a real estate investment to rent out on Airbnb. Yes, hotel room nights are perishable products, which is why they’re popular with the ‘home-sharing’ crowd who adore the fact they’re unregulated and untaxed money-machines.

 

On the other hand, cities exist as complex living environments, home to students, young families, and working people as much as a place to gather for vulnerable and marginalized members of society, those with physical ailments and mental illness, those with no roof over their heads.

 

No ticket to success is refundable should the urban experience not deliver anticipated consumer results or outcomes identified in the Official Community Plan. Risks and rewards are part of the community building-process. Anyone who tells you he or she can guarantee the outcome knows the odds and has rigged the game. So before you buy into the fairy tale of unintended consequences, ask what your “winning” ticket will really cost you.

 

What’s the Mayor’s 21^st century vision of Victoria? An exclusive enclave for wealthy home-owners and tourists flush with cash. Her recipe for success obliges us to ask—what really matters, who truly counts, and what is the full cost of building this playland for people of privilege? Is Victoria a diverse and inclusive place that recognizes, sustains and protects all members of society? Or is that just a figment of my imagination? Does this new picture of Victoria and its narrative include me? Do the actions and decisions of Mayor and Council advance the interests of only the chosen few—at the expense of the many?

 

Every citizen has a right to participate actively in creating a common vision of the City, and contribute to turning a worthwhile dream into reality. It is up to us to think critically about key issues, not only what will be in the best interests of our present generation and our planet, but also what kind of legacy we leave the next generation. Our civic duty is to hold each other to account as much as we hold to account those whom we elect to govern our City. Unless we act with dignity and regard for each other, and take responsibility for our part in harming as well as healing our environment, we cannot ask others to do what we are unwilling to do for ourselves.

 

It’s easy to blame a panhandler for disturbing one’s peace of mind while strolling down the street. But, before calling for a new government of billionaires, bullies, and blowhards to demand Victoria streets be paved in gold—without buskers or brouhaha—ask what premium you’re prepared to pay for the privilege. Remember. Every Faustian bargain comes with an expensive, and often unpalatable, price-tag.

 

You don’t like the suffocating strings attached?  Harumph! Shame on you!

 

Victoria Adams