We Were Right. Let Us Not Waste That Fact.

Hello friends and neighbours,

Success is not the absence of mistakes, but the ability to learn from them.

Over the last couple of months, I have been having conversations with both old friends and new ones, and I am starting to notice a concerning pattern. People tell me they have spoken with certain city councillors and were surprised to hear those same councillors now agreeing with the very concerns residents have been raising for years. Better yet, some are now promising to fix those issues if re-elected.

But in the rarer moments when they are asked how we ended up in this situation in the first place, the answers tend to be much less convincing. The blame is passed around freely: other elected officials, fellow councillors, the province, anyone but themselves.

Just over two years ago, I started this Facebook group with several goals in mind: community, communication, collaboration, and, just as importantly, accountability. Too often, I have watched people in power abdicate that responsibility in favour of appeasing private interests or currying favour with higher levels of government.

As I spoke with many fellow Deltans over the last two years, I often heard the same exhausted sentiment: that rallies, demonstrations, letters, and petitions would not matter because those in power had long since stopped listening. In response, I always came back to one foundational idea: even if they refused to act, they would at the very least be held accountable. Through persistence and determination, we would strip away the excuse of ignorance. They would never again be able to say, “We didn’t know how residents felt.”

I write to you now, six months before an election, to say that our work is not done.

The very people we rallied to, wrote to, petitioned, and pleaded with are now showing up at neighbourhood meetings, information sessions, and community gatherings presenting themselves as if they have suddenly discovered the problems residents have been warning about all along. They arrive with a briefcase full of excuses, diversions, and recycled promises. We hear that they did not know, that they were misled, or that their hands were tied. And now, somehow, they want another chance to fix what they helped create.

Where were these voices when residents were standing in the streets protesting, or gathering in community centres to speak about strained services, crumbling healthcare, and the future of our neighbourhoods? Too often, they were busy telling the public that they knew better.

Anyone paying attention two years ago could see where this was heading. Residents asked for commitments. They asked for time. They asked for a new OCP process they could actually help shape and stand behind.

Instead, many of the same people now speaking about “redoing” the OCP stood before the public at the last hearing and voted unanimously to advance a plan that had deeply limited public support, despite there being more time to get it right. When residents raised concerns, they were too often told to step aside and trust the process.

Two years later, many of those same concerns have been validated. That matters. The fact that residents saw the problem, spoke up about it, and were ignored should not be forgotten by anyone heading to the voting booth this year.

We were right. Let us not waste that fact.

There are now efforts underway to help continue this mission of accountability and progress. I recently spoke with Mark Schoeffel from DREAM South Delta, and there are plans to build an easy-to-use document showing where prospective candidates actually stood on the issues, not just the talking points they have been given this week. If you are interested in helping with that project and feel confident navigating City Hall records, online archives, or public documents, I am sure they would welcome your help.

All we can do is inform one another, keep our elected officials accountable, and learn from our mistakes. Over the last two years, we have built an incredible community of engaged residents who care deeply about the future of our city.

We are nearing the end of this council term. Let us make sure the lessons of the last two years are not forgotten, and that real change follows.

Looking forward to what comes next.

Your friend and neighbour,
Alex Fischer