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Following appears on the Whig-Standard web page www.thewhig.com and in today's paper.
Council denies veterans free parking
By Dawn Cuthbertson
Local News - Thursday, August 25, 2005 @ 07:00
Kingston won't follow in the footsteps of cities like Ottawa and Toronto and give its war veterans free parking for the rest of the year in honour of the Year of the Veteran.
City councillors voted overwhelmingly Tuesday against a proposal from councillor Sara Meers to allow vehicles with war veteran licence plates to park in municipal lots or at meters for free until Dec. 31.
Meers had asked council to look at a report of a similar program running in Midland, Ont. But councillors voted down a request to even consider the Midland model.
The dismissal is a "slap in the face" to all of the men and women who risked their lives for Canada's freedom, said Kingston veteran Bill Sykes.
"I've got a funny feeling going through my body right now. I'm angry," Sykes told The Whig-Standard yesterday. "It's the Year of the Veteran. It's an insult."
Meers said she introduced the motion in a bid to join other municipalities paying tribute to Canadian veterans.
"I've always been a big supporter of our veterans and military because Kingston has quite a large military presence," Meers said yesterday.
Meers said she's disappointed the motion was quashed so quickly, with only a handful of councillors expressing interest in learning more about the initiative.
"It was defeated badly," she said. "I was hoping for a little bit more debate. Unfortunately, it seemed like it was not a hot topic [Tuesday] night."
Sykes and another veteran, Terry Murphy, had been lobbying Kingston city councillors since mid-July after Ottawa approved a similar plan.
"I think it's very shabby treatment by city council," Murphy said yesterday.
"I'm bitterly disappointed."
Sydenham district councillor Floyd Patterson said he voted against the motion because it's too difficult to distinguish between Royal Canadian Legion veterans who served in the First and Second World and Korean Wars and its associate members.
"It would be hard to sort out who really should be entitled to the privilege," Patterson said.
"Not all of the veterans who served long years have a licence plate or ever applied for one."
A veteran licence plate, often decorated with a red poppy, is issued by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. Men or women must have a minimum of three years paid service in the Canadian Forces to qualify. Members of NATO and the United Nations are also entitled.
Patterson said free parking for veterans is a "trivial" way to honour their service and dedication.
Designating a special education fund or dedicating a building in their name is a better way of expressing gratitude to veterans, Patterson said.
"That would be a heck of a lot more valuable than free parking for four months," he said.
Sykes, 60, worked in the Royal Canadian Navy's signals intelligence unit between 1962 and 1979.
"I was right up on the front lines in the Cold War," he said.
"I gave my youth to Canada and I paid for it. I did things that people outside of the military couldn't understand or do."
Now disabled and unable to walk after suffering three strokes and undergoing a heart transplant, Sykes said he relies on his wife to drive their vehicle, which is equipped with a veteran licence plate.
Meers said she hasn't given up on her mission to honour Kingston's veterans this year.
"I hope to get in touch with [the city's] operations committee to make sure this doesn't become a dead issue," she said.
"We only have four months left in this year, let's do something before it's too late.
Council denies veterans free parking
By Dawn Cuthbertson
Local News - Thursday, August 25, 2005 @ 07:00
Kingston won't follow in the footsteps of cities like Ottawa and Toronto and give its war veterans free parking for the rest of the year in honour of the Year of the Veteran.
City councillors voted overwhelmingly Tuesday against a proposal from councillor Sara Meers to allow vehicles with war veteran licence plates to park in municipal lots or at meters for free until Dec. 31.
Meers had asked council to look at a report of a similar program running in Midland, Ont. But councillors voted down a request to even consider the Midland model.
The dismissal is a "slap in the face" to all of the men and women who risked their lives for Canada's freedom, said Kingston veteran Bill Sykes.
"I've got a funny feeling going through my body right now. I'm angry," Sykes told The Whig-Standard yesterday. "It's the Year of the Veteran. It's an insult."
Meers said she introduced the motion in a bid to join other municipalities paying tribute to Canadian veterans.
"I've always been a big supporter of our veterans and military because Kingston has quite a large military presence," Meers said yesterday.
Meers said she's disappointed the motion was quashed so quickly, with only a handful of councillors expressing interest in learning more about the initiative.
"It was defeated badly," she said. "I was hoping for a little bit more debate. Unfortunately, it seemed like it was not a hot topic [Tuesday] night."
Sykes and another veteran, Terry Murphy, had been lobbying Kingston city councillors since mid-July after Ottawa approved a similar plan.
"I think it's very shabby treatment by city council," Murphy said yesterday.
"I'm bitterly disappointed."
Sydenham district councillor Floyd Patterson said he voted against the motion because it's too difficult to distinguish between Royal Canadian Legion veterans who served in the First and Second World and Korean Wars and its associate members.
"It would be hard to sort out who really should be entitled to the privilege," Patterson said.
"Not all of the veterans who served long years have a licence plate or ever applied for one."
A veteran licence plate, often decorated with a red poppy, is issued by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. Men or women must have a minimum of three years paid service in the Canadian Forces to qualify. Members of NATO and the United Nations are also entitled.
Patterson said free parking for veterans is a "trivial" way to honour their service and dedication.
Designating a special education fund or dedicating a building in their name is a better way of expressing gratitude to veterans, Patterson said.
"That would be a heck of a lot more valuable than free parking for four months," he said.
Sykes, 60, worked in the Royal Canadian Navy's signals intelligence unit between 1962 and 1979.
"I was right up on the front lines in the Cold War," he said.
"I gave my youth to Canada and I paid for it. I did things that people outside of the military couldn't understand or do."
Now disabled and unable to walk after suffering three strokes and undergoing a heart transplant, Sykes said he relies on his wife to drive their vehicle, which is equipped with a veteran licence plate.
Meers said she hasn't given up on her mission to honour Kingston's veterans this year.
"I hope to get in touch with [the city's] operations committee to make sure this doesn't become a dead issue," she said.
"We only have four months left in this year, let's do something before it's too late.