Mackies Archery Trial

[chilli]

I received this email this morning from Bob and got permission to share it with my fellow hunters.

 

Dan This might make the message more clear.

 

Sunday while we had twenty kids and their parents here for our" Junior Development Program" a MNR CO came in and handed me a summons to appear in St. Cathrine's Court. I have been charged finally with not complying with the NEC's Restoration Order.

 

The CO seen shocked and very uncomfortable when he saw what taking place inside our building. We had a short conversation and then he left . I got the impression that both times the MNR was here, that they didn't want to be and that they have never had to follow up on the NEC.

 

The court date is March 20, 2009 9am 71 King St. St. Catharines, courtroom #1

 

For the NEC it is about the letter of the law not the intent of the Act. We are not talking about a criminal here, we are talking about a guy that wants to spend his retirement years providing recreation and mentoring for the youth and special needs persons of the Niagara Communities.

 

After doing business with the MNR several times since 2003 and receiving a letter of appreciation from them, this hard nose approach is frustrating. In the next few weeks they are going strip us of our home and my life's work.

 

Many of our clients like the people from "Brain Injury community Re-entry" will no longer be able to receive the satisfaction of sending an arrow down range.

 

It is hard to believe that this three year ordeal started because a neighbour complained they didn't like people on my property, a property at that time. I allowed them full use of.

 

For me it is protecting my livelihood and will probably test the waters on both side of the fence.

 

Any thoughts or comments.

 

Bob Mackie

392 2 Zimmerman Road Beamsville ON. L0R1B2

Mackies Mountain Archery

905-563-5852

[email protected]

www.mackiesarchery.com

[doubleheader]

I guess I don't understand why he has been summoned, but reading between the line I assume there is some ordinance against releasing an arrow in his community? Before I add more, which would be nothing but a rant on big government anyhow, I better request a clarification.

[solopaddler]

Agreed, while Bob's email is disturbing there's a lot of holes in the story.

I'd personally like to know the reasons why the mnr is doing this...

[Roy]

You can look it up on Youtube if you're interested.

[doubleheader]

Okay, went to you tube, watched a video of some guy interviewing another guy, I assume Mr. Mackie, using a poor imitation of an italian accent. What's that all about? I still don't understand why he's in trouble. I admit after a few minutes with no explanation I gave up. All I know is that governments big enough to provide are big enough to take away. I just wish people could get that before it's too late (speaking about the US gov't here). It appears Mr. Mackie is the latest victim of the government, in this case your government, "looking out for you" I assume the guy with the fake accent is trying to avoid prosecution or harrassment?

[chilli]

Mr Mackie is the victim of an appointed agency that some of its board members are in direct conflict with the mandate they serve. Aggregate companies and developers are in charge of protecting the Niagara Escarpment! Apparently the archery business that plants 100's of trees is more detrimental to the escarpment then the clear cut farmer that filed the complaint.

 

http://home.cogeco.ca/~wildniagara/06113d1-1.pdf

[walleyejigger]

interesting read, thanks for that,

 

 

it seems like he's going thru alot of crap because of a few individuals but the laws seem to be there, as lousy as they may be, now i'm not taking sides but from what i've read mr mackie and his business are in violation, he seems to be doing some good, mostly, if he had a different neighbor maybe none of this would of ever came up, but it did, it's a bummer

[Terry]

did he develop the land without permits and approval ...if yes.....then why should he get away with it

 

if I build a house on a lot in a new subdivision but don't get approval

I would expect to get shut down and or the house levelled

 

but maybe I missed something

[DRIFTER_016]

It does seem that he is in the wrong with this. But the neighbour while right seems to be an .

If he does get shut down maybe he should turn it into a farm.

Maybe knock down the house and put up a nice pig or chicken barn.

[HTHM]

http://www.niagarathisweek.com/news/article/134335

http://www.mackiesarchery.com/

Here is some research starting points. IMHO the NEC (Niagara Escarpment Commission) is being very heavy handed in this matter. It should be an interesting court battle.

[Big Cliff]

Well, first of all I applaude Mr Mackie for standing up and fighting for what he believes in. Just because there is a law on the books that says you "can't" doesn't mean it shouldn't be changed. Heck there is still a law on the books that says "you can't drag a dead hourse down Young Street on a Sunday" (I assume any other day of the week is fine).

 

There are protests going on all over this country about all kinds of things, as far as I can tell this one is going by the books, I hope Mr. Mackie wins, I only met him once but he seemed like a nice enough fellow.

[FLEX ROD]

Good luck to Mr. Mackie, I hope that a solution can be worked out BUT he did not follow the process and the fact that it is HIS LAND does not entitle him to do what he wants.

 

Considering that his livelihood has been affected and he has been fighting this since 2002, one would think that a viable solution can be made and additional safty tools can be implemented to make the other parties more at ease.

 

FLEX - John

[JohnF]

Kinda playing devil's advocate here because I don't know Mr. Mackie or any of the details about this case, but for what it's worth, consider the following:

 

You work hard for years, saving money diligently, doing without toys & vacations you'd dearly love to have, but finally you are able to buy the home of your dreams. You shop carefully and make the offer, doing all possible due diligence to ensure that you may enjoy your new home to the fullest for as long as you want to stay there. You have a lovely treed lot to one side and a ravine with a babbling brook and trees across the rear of your property. The homes on the other of your lot and across the street are well kept and consistent with the style and price of your own castle. Life is good.

 

Then one morning the trees beside you are being cut. Soon an excavator arrives and starts digging a hole, forms go up and concrete gets poured. You think the foundation has a funny shape for a house and it's right up against your property line. Then a masonry company arrives with palettes of concrete blocks and starts building high, very high, walls right up against your property, mere feet from your bedroom windows. You discover that it's to be an abattoir, a small scale slaughterhouse for piggies, that's going to be processing as many as 20 or 30 little piggy carcasses a day. One day a month will be sheep day when they slit 25 little sheepy throats and skin 'em, leaving them looking exactly like smallish greyhounds.

 

Or a less extreme example, you buy the home of your dreams and a few months after you move in the houses next door are all torn down and a strip mall starts construction. That happened to one of my students a few years ago. They hadn't bothered to check the zoning before buying. A small amount of foresight would have saved them the grief.

 

We have a Planning Act in Ontario, and Official Plans and Zoning-By-Laws for municipalities, to protect us from those kinds of things happening to our properties. Municipalities are required to make far reaching plans for the municipality's development and growth. If they don't stick to the Official Plan for their area there's no protection for the property owners who have entrusted their investment and happiness to the protection of these regulations. Allowing variances from the plan is only done after careful consideration of the effects, and folks who ignore the Planning regs are generally treated roughly, at least in their own view. There would be too many very unhappy property owners if Planning regs didn't exist or were allowed to be flauted by anyone and everyone. There are always stories like this current one of folks who seem to have been treated harshly, but it's really about consistency and the protection of our investments and standard of living.

 

Perhaps the person who initiated the complaint was an earlier victim of the same tough regulations and doesn't want to see anyone have what he couldn't, and perhaps there are extenuating circumstances that will help Mackie to get some satisfaction or relief. I run into situations like this all the time. Most of the time we are early enough to give the right advice to the property buyer or owner so they don't get into trouble. Occasionally they choose to ignore our advice and invariably they fall afoul of the regs and the bylaw enforcement types.

 

Respectfully

JF