This may be a golden opportunity!

FRAM and The Town of Wasaga Beach have parted ways. Let’s look at the questionable decisions our Council has made to get us here:

First, they never truly looked at why FRAM walked away in the 2018-22 term. Oh sure, the standard- there were conditions that lapsed excuse, but look at how the departure was announced. The President of FRAM took to Social Media to attack tax-payers of Wasaga Beach. He then shared a stage with the rejected ex-Mayor Smith, in order to tell residents the current Council didn’t know what they were doing. They (Smith and FRAM President) rallied citizens to object to the Council of the day. This became known as the Pitchforks and Hatchets meeting because Citizen Brian Smith used that battle cry. Many people in that crowd eventually committed to take down Council. They did for four years and it was brutal!

Yes, the brutality carried into an election cycle and it worked. Lies were believed and Wasaga Beach got a whole new Council.

Now, despite the brutal opposition they experienced, that Council built a Twin Pad Arena/ Library complex and even went through an extensive process of selecting one developer for Beach One, watching those efforts end, selecting a second developer and ultimately watching the replacement Council cancel it all so they could bring back FRAM as one of the first decisions of their term.

Did they honestly believe somehow FRAM was going to treat them any different this time around? Well that wasn’t a consideration and they wasted the first two years of their term TRYING to get the deal they wanted us to believe was always just around the corner. How many times were we told “shovels in the ground” was only months away?

Well here we are, a good 9-10 years after FRAM entered the picture and we are no closer to seeing our Beach One area re-vamped.

But what HAS happened through this process is Mayor Smith and his team have shown their cards. Here are a few of the things I see as THEIR priorities:

They are determined to build condos from first to third and from Mosley to Beach Drive. Why? Well it’s all based on profits.
They say they are putting out an RFP, but say it will be a shortened period. Wait, wasn’t the RFP FRAM was successful in a limited RFP? During yesterday’s meeting, they also indicated that the Hotel Developer may actually develop more than just the Hotel. (Reference to: usually hotels are at the end of development and they are doing this first)
Is it possible that FRAM wanted it all, but Sunray would do it with just ALL of Beach One? We will have to see how that question gets answered.
Brian Smith is now DESPERATE to accomplish SOMETHING. If that translates into allowing the Hotellier to build Condos from 1st to 3rd to offset his building costs, would he do it? You decide.
They are SO DESPERATE that despite not having any developer under contract, they are still intent on proceeding with the demolition and revamping of buildings and the actual road all along Beach Drive.

Now for a “what if”. What if the Hotel Deal falls through? We would then have paid to demolish buildings, raise a road, modify infrastructure and services and provide the next Council with a fenced off barren construction area.

STOP THIS MADNESS!

Write to our Council and demand three things:

STOP planning Condos for Beach One between 1st and 3rd. Leave that space for parking and tourism related beach structures! Make this a non-negotiable public opinion. Tell them clearly that if they sell that property, it will be the end of their political career.
STOP demolition or raising the road until there is a signed deal with the developers putting whatever structures they negotiate (hotel/ time share/ condo/ retail- whatever) into play. Ensure the developer pays for these improvements!
Issue an open, inclusive RFP for the development of Municipal Property at Beach one (exclusive of land listed in 1 above).

Will this mean they may not actually get anything built? Probably! But doing it right is far more important than doing it fast.

Personally, I wouldn’t care if 6-8 story buildings go in the block presently occupying Bananas, the Dard and Main Street, as long as ALL main floor is retail or service related units. The remainder of Municipal Property from 1st Street to the end of Beach Two, should be carefully planned to include bandshells, large modern bathrooms suited for hundreds at a time, splash pads and picnic areas with attention given to improved parking as well.

But NONE of those visions will be possible if Brian Smith decides he MUST prove that his ill-advised purchase of so much property there was prudent. Don’t allow demolition of ANY buildings or roads, or occupation of 1st to3rd with condos.

It’s time for our Council to eat a little HUMBLE PIE. Remind them, THEY control the direction this will move forward, NOT staff, NOT the WBRPA. It takes FOUR votes to start doing the right thing. The timing of this developer departure is crucial. What happens next will create their legacy.

Close your eyes, envision the only buildings remaining at Beach One to be those still owned by private persons or companies.

Now, think of the road being 5’ higher with NO images shared yet of what that will actually look like. Will it be an open road? Will it be a pedestrian walk? What will the steps to the beach look like? Picture construction fences around the demolition sites, THEN… imagine if a hotel is not built!

Write or phone your Council members…..