Dear editor,
After our parents purchased a fully treed lot in Cameron Highlands in 1994, Mulhurst Bay lovingly became our family’s home away from home. With the warm and welcoming help of our neighbors on all sides, we spent the first few summers clearing the property and adding services. When faced with a challenge beyond our abilities, we would involve local businesses to help us. Over time, those same locals became family friends that were always ready to lend a hand.
Over the years, we always tried to support the local business as much as possible, the Bay View Groceries, the Cedar Crest and the Pigeon Lake Golf Course. We always looked forward to Mulhurst Days in August, to the pancake breakfasts, the occasional summer evening events at the community hall, and in the early days the Cameron Highlands pot luck suppers.
With pride, and mindful of our neighbors, we hosted two weddings on our property…. a number of surprise birthday parties, and even a few large family get-togethers. All the good times and cherished memories were quickly forgotten when we received our information/enforcement notice last fall, regarding bylaw 95/54 and the use of trailers on our property. Our family was struck with an overwhelming sense of loss and heartbreak. Twenty-two years… all our efforts…the friends we made…such a large part of our lives.
The county’s enforcement of this bylaw has created a noticeable division in the community. Suspicion now exists between neighbors, and pending the outcome of the County’s Apr. 21 open house in Mulhurst, it’s possible that the environment will only get worse, maybe even toxic. For some landowners the damage is done, it’s possible that over the next few years that a large number of properties could be hitting the market. If so, it could take a long time for market values to return in the area, as well as a sense of community.
The Billington Family
Cameron Highlands/Edmonton