To the Editor

Effective Sept. 12 which is upon us our Gooderham Post Office is supposed to close. What happened to that so-called public meeting council was going to have? When Bank of Nova Scotia announced it was going to close its bank in Wilberforce council rushed to the plate to hold a public meeting to receive input from those who would be impacted by this closure. However when council in secrecy decided to close our Gooderham post office a public meeting was supposed to ensue yet there was no rushing to the plate by council and to date has not transpired. The closure of the Wilberforce bank has a negative effect on the community of Wilberforce so does the closing of our Gooderham post office have on this community.

Although the closure of the bank is out of the hands of council the closure of Gooderham post office is within its power to stop such a ludicrous decision. If people have to travel to change their banking habits so will their spending dollars. This would mean less being spent at local businesses which could have a devastating effect on their bottom line. If our post office is closed people may change their mailing habits and their spending dollars will also change thereby having a negative effect on the bottom line for our local businesses.

The main reason council decided to close the Gooderham post office was based on dollars and cents so we were made to believe and yet Highlands East council does not demonstrate fiscal responsibility when it comes to additional employees being hired benefits for council members taxpayers paying for their lunches and the list goes on. Surely our post office and staff is well worth the minimal cost to maintain a service that is so valuable to the stability of our community. Somewhere it seems Gooderham is lost in the realm of what makes up the Municipality of Highlands East for which we are supposed to be part.

Beverly MacDuff

Gooderham