Dear Editor:

The recent letter written by Trish Moore in the Osoyoos Times regarding how this town is geared to tourists and not locals hit a spot that has become increasingly  irritating to me.

My husband and I have been here through several mayors going back to Tom Shields.

What we have seen (not heard) has been a concentrated effort to get developments done –  that is to bring more tourists to town.

What seems to have been neglected are the folks who actually live here year round.

A good case in point is the number of vacant business space on Main Street. The numbers are appalling.

The folks that moved out or on say it is because building owners jack up the rent so high that it makes no sense for them to have a store here.

They (the businesses that left) are now in Oliver and other more receptive places.

What do the locals have here?

Oh we have world class wineries, but I wonder just how many local residents frequent them on a regular basis?

We have a few good restaurants, some golf courses, a great bakery and two grocery stores that are owned by the same company, both of which have higher prices then in other towns close by.

We also have two florists, a store that caters to the outdoor active person and a great bike shop, a couple of great spa type places and one of the best hardware stores in the country.

But after that, I am now hard pressed to name much more.

We have great seasonal stores that cater specifically to tourists.

But come on, we go elsewhere to shop and not because we want to, but because we need to because there is not much of an option to shopping right here in our own town.

The community leaders on town council  have not done a whole lot in bringing about housing for the mid range or the younger set just starting out.

There is very little recreation unless you like hockey and curling.

Before you all start yelling that there is soccer, baseball and water sports, I ask does that really cover the broad base here?

We don’t have a swimming pool, but we do have a very poor facility to play squash or racquetball.

Yes we have the Sonara Center and thank goodness for that.

My thought is for town council and the new mayor to get together and come up with a working plan to get this town thriving again. And not for a select few, but for the many who live in this community

The same ones who pay into your tax base.

Bring sustainable businesses here, ones that make sense.

We could certainly use another clothing store that caters to locals and not one certain demographic age.

We could use a shoe store that carries children’s footware. And not all of it has to come from China either.

I am not talking high end or the lower end, but

something in the middle.

Honestly it makes me so damn angry when I see what we do not have and the fact that most of us go somewhere else to make our purchases.

That is just a crock.

I urge our leaders to provide some incentive to bring businesses here that will stay.

This town is so much more then just our tourist base.

Thank you for allowing me to write about this.

Gaye Horn,

Osoyoos B.C.