Dave Kandal, left, chair of the Abbotsford Airport Authority, and Mike Pasto, general manager at YXX, with $30 million worth of expansion plans at their fingertips.
Your shivering scribe is standing in the heart of Toronto’s financial district, braving a nippy Sunday morning, when a stranger walks over and asks: “Hey sir, do you know what the best nation in the world is?”
My tired eyes quickly light up – thanks, in part, to excessive amounts of espresso – and lock in “Canada” as the final answer.
“Nope. DONATION. Can you spare some change?”
My first thought was this slick dude dresses extremely well for a beggar, but he called me “sir” so I placed a toonie in his glove and asked: “What do you know about Abbotsford?”
“Abba what? Huh?” He walked away laughing, not appreciating he had just taken my corporate travel allowance, but that’s another column – maybe!
The comedic coin collector repeated an answer I heard many times on this two-day, pretend-I’m-Rick Mercer-fact-finding-mission.
You see, when our politicians spend your money on big-ticket items they like to throw in how the latest pet project “really puts Abbotsford on the map.”
And reporters turn stenographers and scribble that stuff down like it means something. (Melville – the armpit of Saskatchewan – is on the map. Who freakin’ cares?)
For the record, nobody in Toronto, Mississauga or Scarborough had heard of the Friendship Garden, the Heat, the Clearbrook Road interchange or Plan A, but several knew about our airshow, gangs and that pesky murder capital status thingy.
I hung out at one busy corner where a large, illuminated sports ticker flashed CFL, NFL, NHL and AHL updates. I asked a couple guys when the Heat-Rampage score flashed if they knew of Abbotsford, or if they’d go see the Heat when they played the Marlies in Toronto.
“Give us free tickets and we’ll go anywhere,” smiled one, after saying he heard of Abbotsford, but wasn’t sure what province it was in.
“Close to the Olympics, right?” offered one giggling gal, who admitted later that was an educated guess – after I provided West Coast as the clue!
The bottom line in the Centre of the Universe, where Leaf fans are already talking “next season” and Liberals are talking “next election,” is that Abbotsford could steal the CN Tower and still be a mystery to most. It’s just how they roll in Hogtown.
Heck, most folks in the Big Smoke can’t name four prime ministers, but they know the first name of everyone related to Wayne Gretzky, but I digress.
The “connection” we have to the rest of Canada is WestJet, the impressive little airline that could. When you’re at 39,000 feet above Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Montreal, Winnipeg, Ottawa or Edmonton, Abbotsford is on the “GPS map” and minds of those flying in, out and over the City in the Country.
It’s why Abbotsford International Airport is key to letting the outside world in.
When YXX receives government funding to expand and some locals complain, they fail to see the bigger picture. Perhaps they’re still seething from other suspect funding schemes (hello hot tubs!).
YXX, thanks to WestJet, has the potential to attract all kinds of businesses, conventions, sports, tourists, entertainment and industry. Yet several readers have stated they become livid when they see “airport, gem” and “economic benefit” linked in the same story.
Just ask our receptionist – she looks like that ghastly Bettle Juice character after dealing with these “critics” who often drop a few expletive deletives before slamming the receiver on her ear.
One lady returning from a weekend festival in Winnipeg offered at the YXX luggage carousel: “No matter where you fly to, this is always a great place to return and land – close to home, nice and convenient.”
Touché.
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