Please send your petition to our government!

Don MacLean, Mayor of Pitt Meadows
dmaclean@pittmeadows.bc.ca

Kim Grout, director of operations, City of Pitt Meadows
kgrout@pittmeadows.bc.ca

TransLink Head Office
gvtaboard@translink.bc.ca

Gordon Campbell, Premier of British Columbia
Premier’s Office
premier@gov.bc.ca

a support letter from Karl Perrin, Chair, Environment C'tee

To: Mayor Don McLean
John Becker
Doug Bing
Debra Eisel
Janis Elkerton
Andrew Tolchard
Deb Walters

From: Karl Perrin, Chair, Environment C'tee
Unitarian Church of Vancouver

Dear sir or madam,

I understand that there is a proposal to put another road through
Formosa Farm.

Please do not participate in the paving of our precious farmland. As
shipping costs increase, our local agriculture (some of the best in
Canada) becomes even more valuable. Organic farms, especially,
enrich the soil and take CO2 out of the atmosphere, and add carbon to
the soil.

For multiple reasons, we must not "pave paradise, put up a parking
lot". There are smarter, more efficient ways to reduce congestion
than short term fixes such as building more roads.

Thank you for your consideration.

All the best,
Karl Perrin

Fomosa News on Channel M

http://www.youtube.com/user/formosanurseryrisa

Risa's heartbreaking speech on Aug 31's press conference

Risa's heartbreaking speech
Originally uploaded by Formosa Nursery, Organic Blueberry Farm

With help from M.L.A. Michael Sather, we had a press conference today to voice out our concern—against another road to cut our farm to 3 pieces.

The city of Pitt Meadows will have a meeting on Tuesday, Sept 4. The meeting is plan to proceed the road to get constructed. We can't let them doing this behind our back again.

A protest is planned. We need your support to say no to City of Pitt Meadows. Please come to meet at our farm at 4PM and we will go to the city hall at 6:30PM.

JOIN OUR PROTEST at the CITY HALL of PITT MEADOWS
TIME / DATE: 6:30PM, Tuesday, September 4
LOCATION: 12007 Harris Road, Pitt Meadows, B.C., V3Y 2B5

市政府抗議活動
時間： 9月4日下午6時三十分（有機藍莓採摘活動之後）
地點： 匹特草原市政府

TO SIGN the PETITION, PLEASE LOG ON:
http://www.formosanursery.com/roads.htm
OR
www.ipetitions.com/petition/formosanursery

#2 cut through our farm to 3 pieces

#2 cut through our farm to 3 pieces
Originally uploaded by Formosa Nursery, Organic Blueberry Farm

Pitt Meadows is planning to build North Lougheed Connector through our organic farm. The city will have meeting on Tuesday, September 4th, to decide if they will proceed the construction as plan. Mayor of Pitt Meadows claims it is necessary to build the road because the city has attracted many people to move to Pitt Meadow. Once again, we doubt how could a two lands highway relief the traffic with more people commute to city by cars.

我想傳之訊息

Dear all

1) 傳媒和很多關心農場的朋友都以為事情已經解决，事情不是這樣的，事實是我們被政府官員欺騙了。政府用這樣的手斷來欺負老百姓是很令人氣憤的。我的心很痛，痛的不單是30多年的心血所開建的有機農場被毁，還有政府辦事的方法、被騙和受到欺負。

2) 去年10/11月，我們向傳媒講述政府要改變公路路線強行切開寶島農場。23/11政府的負責人與我們會面，說會在公路完成後修復我們的農場，就如公路未建立時一樣，著我們可以好好睡覺，但條件是no media和no NDP。

3) 我們相信了他們的說話，並且按照他們的指示聘請專家Ernest & Young撰寫報告評估農場的損失。

4) 在4月一個早上6am當我們仍在睡夢中，推土機便開進了我們的農場.( 双方律師尚在談判中)

5) 工程迅速地進行，但政府在修復、賠償方面卻在拖，並且開始不認賬，找律師來貶低我們農場和否定專家的評估報告。

6) 在收地補償上，政府的報告認為我們只是ㄧ般種植有機蔬菜農地。給我們的補償與鄰近農地的市價是至少有一倍差異。推平破壞了我們的農場並開這樣不合理的價錢，這種手段，是民主政府做事的方式嗎？

最近，政府的官員又向我們說可以幫我們買土地，說是幫助我們。我的律師告訴我他們是想以低價買我們的土地，等日後公路完成後用作發展便可以賺大錢。我真的很氣憤和心痛。我們的政府為甚麼會這樣欺負欺騙我們老百姓？

7) 當初政府祕密改變公路路線，就是要拿我們的優質農地去發展，是一步一步地迫我們放棄這個由我爸爸媽媽辛苦建立的祖業。我實在忍無可忍，所以向傳媒講出實情，告發我們這個欺負老百姓的無良政府。我的先生從小就在加拿大成長.他一直向我說加拿大人是重誠信的，我們真的想不到政府可以這樣不守信用，不講公義。

我的目的和要求，是告發不義政府和尋求公正。

謝謝您們的了觧及支持正義.
有心人士, 並請賜教, 給予意見
合十感激..
Risa

Another road to chop off our wonderland!

A new proposed North Lougheed Connector—cut through our farm again!
Originally uploaded by Formosa Nursery, Organic Blueberry Farm

The battle with TransLink is not over yet; another road called the North Lougheed Connector is proposed to cut through our farm. We wonder what we have we done to be treated like this. Is our organic farm land really worth nothing? How about the thousands of organic blueberry bushes that Translink destroyed already? Only worth of $8,000? My family work so far to preserve this land, how could one measure this?

More highways are being planned through our farm, most likely for commercial development. Will more highways really mean better traffic flow or just encourage more cars to use these roads? Is this the only solution that short-minded governments and planners could think of? Vancouver and other forward-thinking municipalities have long ago learned that more highways are not the solution. Other, more community-minded solutions exist. The Pitt Meadow and Maple Ridge municipal governments and Translink are building more highways to promoting the growth of the local economy, but they forgot what is more valuable and is worth keeping right at their door. These proposed highways, etc., are one-size-fits-all solutions to community planning that are homogenizing our towns and cities and destroying our valuable heritage and land resources (like our rare and valuable organic farms) that so many in different people in communities across the Lower Mainland rely on. Where else will we find another wonderful farm? This one we have has already made so many people happy and has so much wonderful history organically. The highway means keeping the farm organic is unlikely.

Our fighting with The Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority

This news came to our attention about 4 years ago. The Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority, known as TransLink, decided to build the Abernathy Connector for the Golden Ears Bridge. Despite countless petitions and numerous protests to the TransLink, the bulldozers came in 6AM in April 2007 without notice, and tore our farm into 2. Hundreds and thousands more than 30 years old mature organic blueberry trees that were planted by my parents had been destroyed. This project has threaten our organic status since.

TransLink refused to move the connect way 30 meters south, along the south edge of our farm. They claimed it would cost too much of taxpayers. They promised to give us fair compensation if we kept quiet and gave no further protest. Since the construction started, our lawyers contact TransLink and receive minimal respond. The TransLink is quieter than we are. We then realize our lives have been jeopardize.

Our heart has been torn apart as our land is disappearing in front of our eyes. Our lives will never be the same. We were once proud to be a Canadian, but now we doubt our government has failed to protect the interests of their citizens. We feel deeply hopeless, but our two children are depending on us, so does countless families who we share great memories together.

We did, however, get many supports from local NDP, MLA, media, communities, and families. We aim to show the photos of our farm before and after this incident. We hope your help to spread the news and raise the awareness of protecting our valuable farmland.

You could see our collections of photos by log on: www.flickr.com/photos/formosanursery

Formosa Nursery is bisected by Translink

The Translink's Abernathy Connector cut our farm to 2 and destroy many of our certified organic blueberry since this April.