Wendy Moenig’s take on the Heritage Impact Assessment

Ms. Muriel Kim Ms. Julie Harris

June 18, 2014

Dear Ms. Kim and Ms. Harris,

Thank you Ms. Harris, for sharing your insightful report during the Mississippi Mills Heritage Committee meeting on May 27, 2014. Your views on the town of Almonte were very interesting. Almonte is an industrial town you say. I would agree with you, with one small word change: Almonte was an industrial town.

It is now a heritage and cultural jewel, with industrial roots. It is an artists’ haven, a festival town and a cherished tourist destination. It has a warmth, charm and beauty that countless wedding parties want as part of their special day, and that’s why so many brides and grooms have their pictures taken on Riverwalk, with beautiful, natural falls in the background.

It is why countless visitors come, fall in love and stay. I know this, because it happened to my husband and me. I’ve lived in Alberta and BC most of my life. Nothing like Almonte exists in Western Canada. The day in 1999 that I set foot in Almonte, I knew this is where I wanted to live. We moved to our little piece of paradise on the Missisippi River on August 19, 2000. I remember that beavers and muskrats lived a few ‘doors’ down from us. We gave them (beavers) an apple tree, not exactly by choice. But they gave us hours of amusement as they swam up and down the river in front of our riverbank. A family of otters graced us with its presence this spring. Where do animals like these fit into your heritage assessment? A strong natural environment adds to the unique heritage environment that Almonte enjoys and must protect.

We wake up to birdsong, with the soothing sound of the falls in the background… I will never forget OELSys geoscientist Tami Sugarman promising to take away that noisy water sound and replacing it with something soothing and regular, like a mechanical pump.

Almonte is an industrial town, you say. By logical extension, then Ottawa is an industrial town, too. Perhaps a lumber mill should be installed beneath the Parliament Buildings and put to good use all that water going to waste.

Your comment that everything changes is a fact of life. That doesn’t mean to say that we shouldn’t work to make sure the changes are good ones, benefitting current and future generations. The question put to you by the Heritage Committee asking whether the Enerdu project makes the downtown core of Almonte better or worse was never addressed by you, Ms. Harris. In fact, the question seemed to leave you speechless.

We LIVE in your study area, Ms. Harris. Why did we never meet you? Why didn’t you come and ask us or our neighbours about Heritage impact? There are many houses in your study area that have been there for over 100 years, but they are not mentioned by you. You seem to have taken the narrowest definition and view of Heritage Impact Assessment possible, for your study.

To me Enerdu seems to be willing to tear the heart and soul out of a small town and then tell us the damage is minimal. Thank you for this platform.