The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Dear Mr. Editor: As a business owner on Main Street, I would like to publicly congratulate and declare my support for the Business Builders Association as well as the Chamber of Commerce who, as reported in the November 26 edition of The Reminder, have taken the first step in breaching an issue that should have been dealt with a long time ago: the support of Main Street by the City of Flin Flon. As long as I have operated a business, the issue of infrequent and inconsistent snow removal by the City, as well as the general upkeep of Main Street, has been a major concern by the business owners of Main Street and I am glad to see that someone is finally taking the stand to see it addressed. Over the last few years especially, the frequency with which the snow and ice have been removed has seemingly become less and less of a priority, as has Main Street as a whole. Now, of course, with the Flintoba Shopping Centre having recently entered the picture, I fear that our once main shopping area of town will continue to be ignored as a priority. Now, I understand that when large snowfalls occur, that there are a lot of streets that need to be cleared and only so much machinery and manpower to do the job, so of course no one is expecting the streets to be cleared within 24 hours of the snowfall. However, it should not take two, three or even four weeks to get around to the removal of the white stuff on one of the most highly utilized areas of town. Main Street is obviously not the only street in town that needs to be cleared; however, because of it being a high trafficked area, it should be a priority street that should be cleared within only a few days of a dumping of snow. Allowing the snow to sit and settle only allows the build-up of ice which just increases the difficulty of the situation and the danger of the area. Only a couple of weeks ago, I left my place of business to aid an elderly person in stepping over a mound of accumulated ice in order to access their vehicle. Situations such as these simply are not acceptable, both for the safety and for the convenience of our customers. Evidently, with the recent addition of new businesses to our community, the economic and retail trends in our area are changing. The addition of this new competition is not a negative thing; it lends an increased economy to the region, it gives us all a sense of security in a community that was once thought to be headed downhill and it forces the already existing businesses to evaluate the quality of their products and customer service. However, it is also evident that the newer corporate "giants" that have joined our community have the financial means to improve the quality of their locations, be it snow removal, properly paved parking lots or simple landscaping. The "Mom and Pop" small businesses on Main Street do not have the same financial backing, nor the jurisdiction, to improve their immediate surroundings. A position such as this one does not allow us to remain fairly competitive in the marketplace. Personally, I would rather go to a store where I could get out of my vehicle and walk with ease to enter the establishment and do my shopping than have to hurdle mounds of ice and snow or step around cracking sidewalks. The City of Flin Flon needs to recognize the fact that there are now two major shopping areas in Flin Flon and that they need to do what they can to help both of those areas co-exist and flourish. The cessation of the parking meters was a great first step; now let's continue the initiative! When I have read Letters to the Editor in the past, it has always irritated me that people are so quick to critique the job that others are doing yet never willing to be involved or offer potential solutions to solve the problem. Therefore, here are two very plausible solutions to change the issue of Main Street neglect. See 'Benefit' P.# Con't from P.# Firstly, the City is receiving a very tidy sum of tax income from the development of Flintoba Shopping Centre. It would show great foresight of those who operate our city if they would annually set aside a small percentage of that tax revenue from the shopping centre to dedicate to the upkeep and beautification of Main Street. An improved Main Street would only benefit the community as a whole, improving upon the economy, allowing business competition to be fair, and simply show visitors to Flin Flon what a picturesque place it can be. Secondly, if the City still refuses to take a major role in the improvement of Main Street, then perhaps it is time for the business owners to take responsibility in their own arena and help themselves. Now of course, taking on this large amount of responsibility would require funding; funding that we are currently paying to the City in the form of business and property taxes, which are supposed to be utilized, in part, for the maintenance of the community and business areas. Obviously, however, this current situation is not working to the advantage of the business owners. Therefore, if the City does not want to utilize these funds to continually improve our situation on Main Street, then each business owner could withhold a certain amount of their business and/or property tax, pool it with others located nearby, and contract out the duties of frequent snow removal, general clean-up, and beautification and landscaping, to name a few. I am sure that there are several service businesses in the area that would love the possibility of the employment not only as income but an opportunity to aid the community as well. I challenge all business owners and business related groups to continue to challenge the City of Flin Flon on these issues. Speak with the City councillors, write letters to the mayor, join the Chamber of Commerce! Although we elected our city officials to be our representatives, our duties did not cease on election day. Our elected officials can only know what the problems are if we bring if to their attention along with possible solutions and insist on the recognition of these problems. The only way that things will begin to change and improve for us as a community is to force the process that begins the change. I thank the editor for the space in his newspaper and once again, congratulate those dedicated individuals who are doing so much for the betterment of our community. Ð A Concerned Business Owner
