Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto says cruise ship passengers from more than 300 vessels visiting each year bring B次元官网网址渁 lot of interest and money into the cityB次元官网网址� and we should B次元官网网址渃reate an experience that people want to come back for.B次元官网网址�

Pleasant words for one who is enchanted by those descending like a swarm of locusts devouring their way through B.C.B次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址済ardenB次元官网网址� capital city.

Those who donB次元官网网址檛 fly, often make their way on foot, in a horse-drawn carriage to play B次元官网网址楺ueen for a DayB次元官网网址�, or else ride in pedicabs pulled by fit young males flaunting fairytales about the jolly days of yore.

As a James Bay tenant for more than two decades, IB次元官网网址檝e seen a major transition of this quaint colonial fortress island outpost into a profitable paradise for well-heeled property investors not to mention a burgeoning mass tourism hub for a minority of businesses benefiting from the annual migration of Alaska-bound aquaholics.

Just what kind of B次元官网网址渆xperienceB次元官网网址� is Victoria selling? Multi-million-dollar condos by the sea, overpriced B次元官网网址渆co-friendlyB次元官网网址� whale-watching tours, and big-budget bus tours by the thousands to Butchart Gardens?

Is the local economy really kept afloat by cruise ship crowds? Have short-term rentals known as B次元官网网址済host hotelsB次元官网网址� become the saviour of the cityB次元官网网址檚 many pied-a-terre property owners?

While the majority of Victoria residents are facing unprecedented increases in their cost of living from shelter to food, transportation, and health care, a growing population barely making ends meet now camp out in streets and parks. In this city, visitors appear to have a higher priority among politicians than the needs of locals.

Perhaps elected officials and those who are facilitating the growth of inflated real estate prices and tourism dollars bringing touted B次元官网网址渂enefitsB次元官网网址� to the city should look at the costs locals pay for congestion, pollution, coastal erosion, inundation, biodiversity loss and population displacement.

There is no free ride or free lunch. It is weary citizens who pay the lionB次元官网网址檚 share of taxes to sustain our infrastructure and services, not the day-trippers.

Maybe itB次元官网网址檚 time to consider meeting the needs of taxpayers before bending over backwards for travellers.

Victoria Adams

Victoria