I feel that Whitehorse is no longer for Yukoners. A number of things have brought me to this conclusion.
I moved here in 1981, when Whitehorse was a nice place to live. I have lived here, on and off, for some 16 years. When I last returned in 2007 I didn’t recognize the place, and it’s gotten worse since. It used to be a very special town.
Recent articles in the paper, just small things such as the furor over Alpine Bakery volunteers and Pioneer Cemetery being closed to dogs, have led me to believe this is no longer a unique community. People flock here by the hundreds, gobble up the overpriced, endless condos that spring up like weeds, and bring with them standards from their less unique communities which they impose here. We’re just another town somewhere in Canada.
Meanwhile, the City of Whitehorse whores itself and city land out to anyone with a dollar. I haven’t had a construction noise-free summer in four years.
Resources, such as actual affordable housing and family doctors, are in very short supply, and simply aren’t being addressed. Infrastructure is a joke. The Yukon government seems ill-equipped to deal with anything, or it bows to whatever wind is blowing at the moment.
Yes, I hear you all saying, “Well, move if you don’t like it,” which I eventually will. It’s just too bad.
Shannon McMurphy
Whitehorse