I cannot begin to voice my dismay over the decision to allow development of a 59-unit townhouse complex on the property at 4325 Old Clayburn Rd., with the possibility of another 180 units in the future.

I am having a hard time fathoming that city council’s fear of a lawsuit from the developers (like the White Rock case) outweighs the impact on the environment, Clayburn Village, traffic, lack of retail and the many other issues that were brought up previously.

If council has a legitimate reason for not putting the development through at that time (like other issues needing to be resolved first), how can you possibly be open to a lawsuit?

I am also stunned that it would have taken only three council members to have the power and lack of foresight to push this thing through – there were only five council members in attendance.

It should not have been done. We are not saying that nothing should be built there, just that there are other issues that need to be addressed and resolved first, like the flooding of Clayburn Village and the traffic.

As a residence of Shearwater Drive, what will be likely known as the “turnaround route,” I would venture to guess that the lawsuits from children run down in the street by speeding vehicles or damage from flooding issues that the development has caused or aggravated will far outnumber anything the developer could throw at you, not to mention when the entire new development comes down into Stirling Properties from its perch on a spring-covered, unstable gravel bank.

Let’s not forget that Clayburn Road already collapsed a few years ago, and according to the maps on your own website, the development site is composed of the same sand/gravel that the road was.

According to your own OCP, some of the goals for multi-family housing are “adjacent to community commercial development; with good access onto major streets; along transit corridors; topographic or environment conditions that preclude single family; and close to urban amenities.” This property conforms to none of those guidelines. Nothing is within walking distance.

So much for a greener city.

This development is a huge mistake and I, for one, have completely lost any faith that I had in our municipal government.

Doug and Kim Schuurman