What is the mayor of Collingwood doing about it?

I am a former resident of the area.

I loved living in Collingwood and Thornbury, but I could not stay due to the fact ( a basic one at that).

If there are no jobs other than pouring cups of coffee to rich tourists and or cottage owners, people can't sustain a good quality of life unlike your mayor.

I cannot sympathize with the area's hard times that I was listening to over the Christmas break: no snow, Blue is closed, layoffs, layoffs, layoffs...

As your regional leaders made it quite clear, the people that spend their lives (all of it) in the area do not matter, and have no choice but to take the part-time, low-paying positions available due to the fact that no other industry is welcome.

I know this first hand. I am a designer in industry, but I had limited options for employment in the area, so I left to Brockville where I have begun over again.

This is going to happen more and more as your constituents have allowed the political figures to put all your eggs in one basket, tourism is great but it isn't everything.

Your mayor has to fight for the people that cut the land and the hardworking individuals that have invested their lives there.

It is nice to have the tourism thing going but how many mid-range incomes are available?

You don't have to be an economist to see it.

There is a downturn in the quality of living there and that is a shame.

Shame on the governing body for allowing it to happen and letting it continue.

My hopes and wishes go out to those that had jobs at Alcoa. They are the ones that are about to pay the price for a blind council.

Jim Dubash, Thousand Islands.