The lack of parking along Sooke River Road is no secret, but it is an issue that is overlooked by district council, says council-watcher Gail Hall.
“The traffic from the Girl Guide camp to Sooke Road is frightening and the parking is all over the place, so something has to be done,” said Hall, a resident of the area.
“It terrifies me to be on that road, and with the Girl Guides right near by, my fear is that some little child is going to pay the price.”
Hall told council that the road is dangerous, and noted taxpayers have already put $765,000 towards buying the piece of property across the road from Fred Milne Park to create a park, but it didn’t solve the problem.
She explained that most of the land went towards the agricultural land reserve instead of turning it in to a park, and there is still not a lot of room for parking on the property.
Hall believes the district is unsure of what to do with the rest of the land, but hopes that they will find a way to create more parking on it without costing more money.
“The responsibility to protect citizens on that piece of road is yours, so let’s not delay any longer. Make some decisions, but please don’t put the bill on us. We’ve already paid our dues towards that piece of property,” Hall told council. “You have to act on this.”
Council told Hall that they sent in a request to the ALR for an alternate use of the land and received an approval, which is where the horseshoe pitching club is now, but said it is an ongoing issue that needs to be further discussed.