There are generally recognized to be three major land sale transactions that are considered to be the worst deals in the entire world for how poorly the seller fared on the transaction:
1. The sale of Manhattan Island by Native Americans to the Dutch for the value of a basket of beads.
2. The sale of the entire State of Alaska by the Russians to the Americans for $7.2 million.
3. The sale of the entire False Creek waterfront of Vancouver by the Province of B.C. to Li Ka Shing for a net sale price of less than zero after the environmental clean-up costs, borne by the Province.
Fast forward to 2014 and it would appear that the “brain trust” that is in charge of Squamish and in particular the giveaway of the entire downtown Squamish waterfront is about to top the lunacy of the three sales above, to catapult into first prize for seller stupidity on a large land sale transaction.
They have been outwitted by one of their former directors on this dubious journey, aided and abetted by the former banker who loaded up SODC with the debt burden it now carries.
It is a sad spectacle to witness such stupidity.
These lands should be retained for the people of Squamish for what could eventually become our Stanley Park.
The debt can be properly financed and paid off gradually over time like a house mortgage.
One wonders how tempting it must have been 100 years ago for the young City of Vancouver council members to sell the lands that are now Stanley Park to a real estate developer? What lunacy that would have been.
The people of Squamish should “man the barricades” to stop this outrageous giveaway. And I expect they will wake up and do just that, come this November.
This deal is sheer lunacy, but then, that is what we have come to expect from the people running this town!
Douglas R. Day
Owner, Garibaldi Springs Golf Resort
