“Doublespeak” is often comic, despite its clever intent. A good example (Leader, Dec. 23) is Make Waves’ assertions that adding native plants around their proposed 40,000-square-foot building would protect and preserve “the concept” of Kah Tai Lagoon Nature Park.

What a hoot.

Almost an acre of the park, not to mention unlimited access to the park-and-ride, is coveted by the port, Make Waves, city staff, and numerous fitness supporters who don’t give a real twig about park history and preservation, but nevertheless talk meaninglessly about its “preservation.” It seems Kah Tai is only to be protected to the extent of what is left after special interests have destroyed as much as they can get away with.

Many newcomers don’t realize that Kah Tai wasn’t always the way it is now. The port’s dredge spoils from the Boat Haven excavation in the ’60s turned Kah Tai into a wasteland. Since then, it has been thoughtfully converted over several decades into the lovely, passive nature park that people now enjoy as they walk and bike through. The straight engineered shoreline left by the Army Corps of Engineers during the dumping was even undulated to create a more natural look. Wildlife nesting and feeding berms and grassy areas have been built, planted and maintained. It’s been a lot of work, and the birds love it.

So far, the city and port have both ignored state regulations governing land-use conversions of outdoor recreation sites developed with state funds, as was the case with Kah Tai Lagoon Nature Park. If the uses of the land are to change from those uses stated in the original grant, state permission must first be obtained. Local zoning has nothing to do with it. The city is legally obligated by those state regulations because it submitted grant applications, signed state agreements, and accepted state grant funds to develop Kah Tai. That obligation doesn’t just evaporate when the park lease expires. That is also a separate legal process.

I’m curious how the city will deal with the state’s use-conversion requirements during its review and inevitable approval of the Make Waves building permit application. It’s possible the city will just continue to ignore the state regulations as somehow inapplicable. More likely, the city might claim the building isn’t an actual use conversion because it “protects” and “enhances” the nature park.

Watch for lots more entertaining doublespeak.

NANCY DORGAN

Royston, B.C.