EDITORIAL: Other side of the story?
Published: July 31, 2008 6:00 PM
Updated: August 01, 2008 8:03 AM The Union

Square/Centennial Place seniors’ home in Cumberland has a rule forbidding pets.

Some residents have acquired pets.

The Cumberland Senior Citizen’s Housing Society, which runs the complex, ordered pet-friendly seniors to remove their animals in two months or face eviction.

It all seems so straightforward, except it’s not.

The seniors clearly love the cats they have adopted, even having some of the feral ones fixed. As a group, residents have unofficially adopted a neighbourhood dog named Amy, which they take turns feeding, housing and walking.

These company-craving seniors care for their animals so much they have ignored the society’s warnings and now face eviction.

The stress on residents caught between the choice of losing their beloved pets or being evicted has taken a toll.

All the while, the society has been adamant that the animals must go in spite of not enforcing the rule over the years and allowing the situation to develop.

The society has communicated with the residents for whom it is responsible by posting notices. It has refused to comment to the media, claiming this is a private matter between the society and residents.

Perhaps, but letters to the editor clearly indicate people outside the seniors’ home care what’s happening to residents, more it seems than do society members.

Much like a private airline commenting to the media about a safety concern, the society should realize that it needs ongoing support to keep operating.

The society needs the ongoing support of people in the Valley, so if there is a logical explanation for the society’s position, let’s hear it.

Is there a reason why it cannot grandfather existing animals and phase out the problem?

And if society members do not appreciate the way they have been characterized here, that is part of the price they pay by keeping their side of the story to themselves. editor@comoxvalleyrecord.com

http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_north/comoxvalleyrecord/opinion/26166589.html