It is wonderful to read that the Niagara Parks Commission is protecting their beautiful lands from carnival like activities and anything deemed as “stunting”. They are showing good stewardship.
NPC has looked long and hard into the Nik Wallenda proposal and have come to a decision and will allow Mr. Wallenda to walk across the Niagara River on a tightrope. This will bring an estimated 120,000 people on the site and hopefully will beef up the sagging tourist economy. The commissioners unanimously voted in favour of this walk.
NPC cheerfully facilitates another tourist operation, the Whirlpool Jet Boat Tours. Niagara Parks Commission rents/leases WPJT space to sell tickets for a ride on a jet boat that screams up river every 15 minutes, scaring the daylights out of any living creature along the shoreline.
The NPC does not control the river but they do control the road to the river. NPC has given WPJT sole use of this roadway. This NPC road was opened to the public for years. They have allowed WPJT to install gates at the top of the roadway, forbidding any other vehicle to use this road. NPC has given WPJT permission to cut down trees along side of this road to allow WPJT tour buses to pass by with more ease.
Why was a decision to allow Mr. Wallenda to do his tight rope walk such a moral issue for the NPC? If they are so concerned for their mandate regarding their role to preserve and commemorate the historical cultural and environmental significance of the Niagara River corridor, they should have a long hard look at who they are accommodating when they assist WPJT .
Walking a tightrope once every 20 years is not as detrimental to the environment as a 1,500-hp boat screaming up river four times an hour. Why is this not a concern for the commissioners of the Niagara Parks Commission?
Alice Duc Triano
Queenston
One Comment on "Letter to the Editor: Niagara Parks Commission is not consistent with its moral positions"
Alice your comments appear to be a bit skewed.
The dock space where the jet boat in Queenston is docked was a parcel of land that was privately owned. I do not believe the NPC had any input over the owner renting his land to the jetboat. As for the road that you refer to, it was always used by fisherman, car thieves and undesirables as they went to the northern end of it. The only thing usefull was the water that came out of a pipe which I saw many people use for drinking or winemaking.
It appears that you are just another jetboat complainer and are using this article to promote your distaste for that business. I have been on the jetboat, my own boat and another workboats and have yet to see animals on the shore having their wits scared out of them.
As for the tightrope fool. I hope he does not end up like his grandfather.