Dear Flames
You last post made me sad and frustrated. Don’t know if you managed to look around the last time you were in Fernie, but local businesses are struggling. Lately we have had a small surge in businesses starting up, so hopefully we will see the town begin to thrive again.
Fernie needs your visitor dollars as well as those from the US and futher afield. This does not make you a cash cow – it’s just how tourism works. We provide services which generally people are happy to pay a high price for, because they can’t get that service where they live. (it’s why people go away on holiday) Locals get said service at a discounted rate because they are here providing the service and can’t afford the top rates because salaries are lower.
On a similar note, Fernie-ites spend a lot of cash in Calgary on items that we simply cannot get here, such as technology (computers etc) and furniture. Calgary is also our major airport, so we support that too. Are we your cash cow in terms of consumer goods and international transportation? I know you pay the same price as us for items you purchase there, but you don’t have a round trip of 7 hours to get them, and you do save the PST – we are supposed to come back to BC and pay the PST here, if the item is for a business.
It is interesting that you will come to Fernie and utilise the facilities at the ski hill, owned by RCR, who have their head office in Calgary, but avoid using facilities provided by so many hard working locals. These people can barely afford to live here any more because most of the houses are being bought up for second homes by people who don’t live here – (many from Calgary). The earning potential in the city is such that locals struggle to compete in the housing market. People have to live here to provide this mountain playground that you love so much, but on minimum wage, is it not fair that they get a deal on some of the fees? Perhaps you would prefer that there was no town at all, simply free wilderness for you to fish and hike to your hearts content. But then who would pay the taxes to provide the roads for you to get here, the hospitals to fix you when you fall off a cliff, the stores for you to get the milk you forgot to bring, or the auto-parts store for the spare bulb when your headlight blows?
I don’t fish, but I agree with the permit fees if it protects the river so that there will always be fish in it. I believe everybody should get a break when it comes to being able to play in their back yard, so I think it’s okay that locals get to pay less to fish the Elk.
If you are worried about discrimination, then try not to give us something to discriminate against. If you come here and stomp all over our pristine landscape, but refuse to help support the structure that keeps it pristine, then expect plenty of discrimination – it’s arrogance, pollution and stupidity we hate here, not Albertans – or is that the same thing?
seasonsgreetings
