The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Obviously such a project would virtually reâ€" structure the existing downtown area at a cost of millions of dollars to the city. Not feasible? You had better believe it. The report, prepared by Professor Norman Pearson of the University of Western Ontario, notes the proposed plazaâ€" will not infringe upon the existing downtown core because "the damâ€" age has already been done"‘. ‘Professor Pearson claims downtown Waterloo is unlikely to attract any large department stores less a "massive, comprehensive, costly and at g-‘sent unfeasible redevelopment scheme of great complexity‘ is undertaken. The Pearson Report has arrived‘! , And according to the 108â€"page document the preposed plaza for the north end of Waterloo (at the King Stâ€"Conestoga Rd. intersection) will benefit not only this city but the entire region. Perhaps the basis of the report is to point out what we all know to be fact â€" far too many resiâ€" dents of this city are shopping elsewhere. The new plaza (proposed by Select Properties Ltd. of Mississauga) would help capture a large porâ€" tion of the shopping dollar currently spent by Waterloo residents in other areas. A plaza of this magnitude (approximately the same size as Fairâ€" view Park in Kitchener) would do more than that. It would, in all probability, attract shopâ€" pers from the entire region‘ y Because of this factor the cities of Kitchener and Cambridge will be emphatically opposed to the project. And so will a great many people from this city. Reaction from the downtown area (inâ€" cluding Waterloo Square), Westmount Place, Zellers County Fair and the Towers Plaza will undoubtedly be violent. Unfortunately their loss would be Waterloo‘s gain. This city is, as the report notes, growing at a rate of twice that of the region. In this respect alone the proposed mall is necessary. Pearson says there will be no harmful economic effect realized if the new project is given the green light. When considering the overall picture, Waâ€" terloo‘ will certainly benefit economically beâ€" cause more people will be attracted to shop withâ€" in the city‘s boundaries. But the existing shopâ€" ping areas will suffer. Pearson‘s report says the new project will inevitably help the existing merchants of this city by stimulating shopping in this area. That is questionable. We doubt if Waterloo Square or Westmount will ultimately benefit from a new mall. Presently it is difficult to find a parking place at either of these locations during peak shopping periods. The new mall would alleviate this problem. It will be some time before these questions will be answered to our satisfaction. New plaza may be _ costly The big question will be opposition. Will there be enough from the region (which is opposed to a regional shopping centre) and the businesses of Waterloo to thwart the proposal? Or is the economic gain expected from the 65â€"acre project enough to out weigh the adverse effects? Viewpoint Wednesday, July 3, 1974 â€" Comment In case you weren‘t aware of it Monday is elecâ€" tion day. It‘s not that people are illâ€"informed it‘s just that this election has to be the hoâ€"hum of the century. â€" For the past month we have listened to the five candidates for : Waterlooâ€"Cambridge go through the motions of campaigning. Many would argue that this shouldâ€"be the most notable camâ€" paign because of the issues involved. It all startâ€" ed with the defeat of the now forgotten Turner budget. And there‘s the question of leadership. Unemployment insurance: Federal aid. Minority and majority government. Was there in fact anything more than political rhetoric involved in this campaign? We doubt it. Of the five candidates in this riding two can be automatically eliminated as far as the winner‘s circle is concerned (Social Creditist â€"John Long and Marxist â€" Leninist Richard Rathwell) . . That leaves us with the representatives of the three major Canadian Parties. They are incumâ€" bent Max Saltsman (NDP). Glenn Carroll (Proâ€" gressive Conservative) and Brian Goff (Liberal). Regardless of traditional party support or the soâ€"called inadequacies of minority government the paramount question is which of these three candidates will best serve this constituency. If, for the past 10 years, this area has not received good, solid representation then it would definiteâ€" ly be time for a change. But this is not the case. Published every Wednesday by Fairway Press. a division of Kitchenerâ€"Waterloo Record Ltd. 225 Fairway Rd.. Kitâ€" chener. Ontario. Address correspondence to Waterloo Square. Waterloo, Ont. Telephone 744â€"6364. Saltsman deserves the riding‘s support Saltsman has worked for this area. And he‘s In Canada: one year $8; in United States and Foreign countries: one year $10 Editor: Don McCurdy SUBSCRIPTION RATES ESTABLISHED 1854 Z7 As for Goff, he has also campaigned as rigourâ€" ously as possible under the apparent apa view of this federal election. Brian may bet* getic, sincere and concerned but he lacks the exposure necessary to finish first in Waterloo â€" Cambridge. Unless the large uncommitted vote of this riding bucks prediction and supports the Liberal candidate Mr. Goff will finish a distant third. If he chooses to seek nomination next time things may be different. Undoubtedly this camâ€" paign will be beneficial to him but it will not afford him the opportunity to serve in our nation‘s capital. Carroll knows of Saltsman‘s popularity in Waâ€" terlooâ€"Cambridge and he‘s campaigned harder then his opponents in an attempt to overcome the incumbant‘s track record. This is admirable but hardly cause for support. It is no secret that Mr. Saltsman seriously conâ€" sidered political retirement before he embarked on the lowâ€"key campaign of the past weeks. After 10 years of serving this area he had every n‘ to question his role as a Member of Parliam! and to take a long, hard look at his own priorities. Fortunately for this riding he has decided to seek yet another term in Ottawa. Max has been as good a representative to be found anywhere in this country â€" regardless of political affiliation. But next week he will face the strongest opposition he has encountered to date in Glenn Carroll. Mr. Carroll lost the 1972 campaign by less than 5,000 votes and this time he expects more support. Will he poll enough to defeat Saltsman is another question and one that will only be answered Monday evening. Max knows the value of minority government. Whatever the problems encountered by the last Parliament it worked and worked well for the benefit of this country. Minority governments are a reality under our present socioâ€"economic conditions and it will take men the likes of Max Saltsman to ensure they work for us all. Monday‘s tally will be close but Max Saltsman should top the polls and enter his fifth term of office. Max has supported this riding â€" once again the ricing should support him. worked hard‘