To the Editor,
The obscene destruction of our old 1,000 seat auditorium (to which this community contributed $1 million towards construction) should be stopped.
Our school board and the Ministry of Education may have the legal authority to tear it town, but not the moral authority.
It’s the largest facility of its kind north of Victoria and has hosted some of the biggest names in Canadian entertainment (e.g., Liona Boyd, Loreena McKennitt, André-Philippe Gagnon, Michelle Wright).
Remembrance Day ceremonies and many other community events have been held there. The AV Multiplex is a hopelessly inadequate substitute.
The last reported cost of tearing down the old ADSS is millions of dollars, part of which could be used for a new heating system and any needed seismic upgrades to the auditorium.
The loss of that fine meeting place will be yet another example of the sad decline of South Port, new housing developments notwithstanding.
Richard Berg,
Port Alberni