Arena plans win favour

This was abundantly clear during last Saturday's presentation in Victoria Hall, where residents were invited to view the latest plans and raise questions and concerns with City officials and the architects themselves.

I counted 73 people in the main hall during the initial presentations, and that number dwindled rather than increased throughout the afternoon. Now, 73 interested residents is a mere drop in the Westmount bucket — much less than one half of 1 per cent of the total population — which suggests that this ostensibly controversial project is not such a contentious topic after all. In fact, the silent, vast majority of taxpayers don't seem to have any objections.

The verbal fireworks, expected by anyone who has read the highly charged opinions held by those supporting opposing sides of the issue, did not materialize. Instead, for the most part, the event was carried out in a smooth manner, with everything very polite and civilized.

It was not all blissful back-patting, however, for financing the $30-million behemoth is likely to remain a sore spot with some. But, as city council has clearly stated on several occasions, this now-or-maybe-never scenario gives Westmount the opportunity to get the job done while it can. Otherwise, it could mean many more years of making do with out-of-date recreational facilities.

While some Westmounters are likely to remain sceptical — "I guess we're here to rubber-stamp the project," one sullen resident said upon arriving — a lot of lingering doubts were dashed by the architects and City officials, whose savvy presentations and well-informed responses to questions raised by concerned residents showed that all aspects of the project have been carefully considered. "I came in here with what you might call extreme apprehension," said one gentleman who happened to be leaving the hall at the same time I was. "But now that I've heard them talk the talk, I think they have a pretty good proposal on the table."

Although there are still those who would strongly disagree with him, his sentiment seemed to sum up the overall mood of satisfaction at Saturday's meeting. And if that is any indication, Westmounters can expect the new arena/pool complex to be a magnificent addition to the city.