About 50 people turned out at Shawnigan Lake Community Centre to take a look at a proposed $25-million facelift to the Kerry Park rec centre and many in attendance said they are opposed to the increase in taxes the project would bring.

On Nov. 21, residents of Mill Bay-Malahat, Shawnigan Lake and Cobble Hill will vote yes or no to upgrades to the arena facility and adding a pool to the facility.

If the vote is a yes, it will mean borrowing up to $25 million dollars at an annual cost to taxpayers of $69.36 per $100,000 of assessed residential property value to repay the debt and cover net operating costs.

Don Hall, of Shawnigan Lake was the community centre Tuesday night in an attempt to sway people to the no side of the issue.

“It’s my belief the (Cowichan Valley Regional District) has a bottomless pit of taxpayer’s advertising dollars and we’re getting this rammed down our throats,” he said of Tuesday’s display.

My overall taxes were up by 14 per cent last year and, based on the figures from the CVRD, they’ll go up another 18 per cent because of this pool and that’s not acceptable, especially when you can swim at (Victoria’s) Juan de Fuca pool for about half the price of going to the new Aquatic Centre.”

David Hewson is an outspoken opponent of the new Kerry Park facility and said he believes Tuesday’s meeting, as well as three similar meetings to take place in the coming weeks, are nothing but smoke and mirrors.

“This has all been decided and will be pushed through,” he said.

“They are pushing the pool and there’s nothing here that asks if we really want it,” he said Tuesday night.

Calling the public meeting a “propaganda sell.” Hewson said he wants the CVRD to hold public hearings about the new facility.

Both he and Hewson argued the CVRD is painting a too rosy picture of the new facility and did a poor job of involving the community in the process.

Shawnigan Lake Director Ken Cossey dismissed the notion and said the CVRD is not trying to sway any votes.

“We’re not here to sell any for or against it, we’re just here to provide information,” he said.

And Cossey argued the CVRD has done plenty to get the message out and data shows a voters favour a new rec centre.

“We had three open houses over the summer and an Ipsos Reid poll, that said this is what people want” he said.

South End voters will have three more chances to see conceptual drawings of a new facility and the opportunity to ask questions about them.

The first happens Oct. 29, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Cobble Hill Hall; then again Nov. 9, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Kerry Park Recreation Centre and a last time at the rec centre Nov. 14, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.