A local veteran is asking the District of 100 Mile House to consider allocating special parking spaces for veterans.
During the District of 100 Mile House regular council meeting on Feb. 25 Dale Bachmier, who is a retired captain who served 23 years in the regular forces as well as 14 years in the reserves, attended council to make the request. Bachmier previously sent a letter to council on Feb. 6 where he noted that not all disabilities are seen and that veterans may have mental or physical disabilities, yet are not eligible for a handicap placard.
In an interview with the simplymastery, Bachmier said this includes himself. He has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that has been progressing since he left the service.
"There are certain times when I feel a discomfort comes over (me). It's not that fear sets in, but it's just that awareness is very, very heightened. The parking gives me and other veterans a little bit more security closeness to the buildings so that we're not surrounded," Bachmier explained.
When he was asked why veterans do not apply for handicap parking, Bachmier said that many veterans do not have a physical disability to qualify for disability parking. Moreover, they don't want to take away those spaces from people who need them.
"There's a pride in there, we served our country. We put our lives on the line," Bachmier said.
In addition, Bachmier said that the veteran population is increasing in 100 Mile House and that such a move would "honour and recognize the veterans."
He also cited, in his letter, that larger cities such as Kamloops and the Lower Mainland have adopted similar exemptions. He referenced a story published by the Chilliwack Progress where signs went up in three spots around Chilliwack for veterans.
"Smitties in Williams Lake has a veteran's parking right in front of the door. So you get out of your car, you walk maybe 20 feet and you're in the restaurant. Then places like Kamloops and larger cities now have paid parking. What they've done is they've allowed veterans to park in those paid parking spaces for free," Bachmier said, adding that veterans still needed to abide by the time limit.
Much like Chilliwack, Bachmier says the way someone will be eligible for veterans parking will be if they have a veterans licence plate. If one does, they will be able to park in those designated spots.
During the meeting, Coun. Donna Barnett was moved to tears over the proposal and said she was in favour of it. After regaining her composure, she said that she would be happy to work together with Bachmier to purchase signs and go to the Save-On-Foods and FreshCo locations to scout for possible parking spaces.
"If you get a hold of me, I'll go around to those places with you," Barnett said. She had also called for a special seniors parking sign, citing the Interlakes Hall and the special seniors parking there.
Others were in agreement, such as Coun. Dave Mingo who called for staff to work with Bachmier to determine where the best spots would be in town.
District of 100 Mile House Mayor Maureen Pinkney said that one of the things 100 Mile House has is a higher-than-average amount of seniors and older people.
"We probably have a lack of both regular handicap parking and this one that recognizes our veterans," she said.
Bachmier said it was amazing the District of 100 Mile House was in support of his idea. He says the next steps are going to be looking at the maps that the District of 100 Mile House had provided him to mark where the veterans' parking spots could be.
With files from Jennifer Feinberg.
