Editor:
Current council members and candidates pay homage to something called “economic development” as the solution to all of Sechelt’s woes. Only a couple of them acknowledge that, right under our nose, we already have an important and viable component of economic development — retirees.
“Attracting retirees is probably the best type of economic development,” says Gene Warren of the consulting firm of Thomas Warren and Associates in Phoenix. “Every study shows that retirees are a tremendous benefit to the community where they settle … The logic behind it is simple: they are wealthier than working people and therefore spend more money in the community.”
And we bring more money into the community than we use in services.
We’re the ones who hire young people — to clean and paint our houses, maintain our gardens. We hire skilled tradesmen to make repairs and renovations. We are not “two-month” tourists. We give and spend right here for 10 to 12 months a year. We’re the ones who pay attention at council meetings.
We retirees make Sechelt “work.” We are your volunteers, the ones who work for the festivals, the craft fairs, the library, the community associations. We work for the conservation society’s issues: we work to protect the watershed, to protect our valuable forests, our fish-bearing streams. We bring our professional talents and skills into play; some even start home businesses. So pay attention politicians — we also vote.
Bula Hess, Sechelt
