Allow aquarium vote

Letter
Published: Monday, May 29, 2006
From the day in 1955 when the first aquarium was built in Stanley Park, to the present, expansion of the Vancouver Aquarium has been controversial.

The expansion question has often been linked to the issue of whether it is appropriate to keep whales and dolphins in captivity.

In 1995, the parks board voted to require a plebiscite to approve any further aquarium expansions.

A bylaw restricting the importation of whales and dolphins into the park was passed in 1996 and incorporated into the lease in 1999, but no plebiscite was ever held prior to the renewal of the lease, which runs to 2015.

Last year, the aquarium announced plans for a major expansion, including the Pacific Coast and Arctic exhibits. Last fall, the parks board passed a motion to hold a plebiscite in 2008 to ask Vancouver residents if whales and dolphins should be phased out.

Non-Partisan Association commissioners on the current parks board seem to think that rather than a plebiscite, public meetings or hearings would be enough.

Although this would be sufficient in most cases, it's not adequate when dealing with the thorny issue of aquarium expansion and whale and dolphin exhibits.

I urge the parks board to proceed with a plebiscite in 2008 and add to it another plebiscite asking citizens if they support a 30- per-cent expansion of the aquarium's footprint.

Anita Romaniuk,

Van. Parks Commissioner