Show, don't tell, is often the most convincing form of argument. Most people will believe their own eyes before they believe what they hear.
If the City of Prince George wants no problem getting the referendum passed to borrow about $50 million from the Municipal Finance Authority to pay for a new Fire Hall No. 1 and a replacement for Four Seasons Pool, they should make sure everyone sees the two videos on the city's YouTube page. They speak volumes, even with the volume turned off.
The behind-the-scenes look at Fire Hall No. 1 is a shock. Dispatchers are stuffed in a single room, handling calls from the Alberta border to Prince Rupert and 70 Mile House to Mackenzie. The wiring and computer servers setup is a tangled maze. File boxes are stacked along walls anywhere there is a free space due to lack of storage. Equipment is stuffed onto shelves. The newest fire truck can't even fit in the building.
Meanwhile, across the street at Four Seasons Pool, the ceiling has leak stains, parts of the deck are warped and accessibility is difficult, especially in the winter. The video shows hoses, connections and pumps with rust and other visible signs of serious decline. The concrete walls are visibly leaching.
Yes, the cost is substantial - $35 million for a new pool, $15 million for a new fire hall - but the ongoing return on that investment is substantial.
The fire hall will be relocated to the south corner of Massey Drive and Carney Street, a more centralized location where it will expand its eight-minute response zone by 50 per cent. The building will be earthquake resistant, unlike the current location, and will better house its equipment, personnel and services.
The new Four Seasons (it should get a better name, perhaps after an important individual in the city's history) will be far more energy-efficient, far more accessible for those with mobility challenges and will be better equipped to handle the 80 per cent of the swimming lessons offered in the city for young and old that the aging facility already manages.
The details matter, of course, heading into the referendum on Oct. 28, when local residents will be called upon to vote for or against borrowing the funds to replace these two aging pieces of city infrastructure. Costly renovations would only be short-term patches on crumbling buildings at the end of their life.
Decisive action is needed.
Between now and the end of October, the mayor, city council and city staff need to make the case. The two videos are a good start.
