Dear Editor:
This letter is sent regarding a front page article that appeared in the Sept. 17 of the Osoyoos Times.
It appears the Town of Osoyoos may have illegally granted concessions on the beaches of Osoyoos Lake.
To charge for a concession, the town must prove, by title or lease, possession of the beach.
Unless the Navigation Act, which is one of the oldest acts in Canada dating back to the fur trading days, has been changed, it would still apply to Osoyoos Lake.
This act, under the jurisdiction of the federal government, covers all the waters of the lake up to the high water mark and also provides numerous accesses to the lake. This would naturally include all of the beaches.
As a member of the local fish and game clubs in the 1950s, we used this act to force a resident on the west side of Osoyoos Lake to re-open an access to the lake that he had blocked.
Unknown to most people, there are numerous accesses to the lake, but many of them are blocked or encroached upon.
Perhaps there may be a legal action concerning this, which the town will no doubt fight (just another tax bill).
If a blunder was made, shouldn’t the defence bill be born by them rather than us, the local taxpayers?
Since the newspaper was denied information held by the town, I believe something must be hidden.
Wouldn’t it be fitting for the town administrators to be served with one of the own letters of expulsion?
Good luck in your search for “openness and accountability” as our politicians are wont to say.
Fred Fouty
Osoyoos, B.C.
