Commentaire 287 – commentaires et rétroaction

Jennifer Looi

Hi, I am writing to express the importance of preserving the Scarborough Agincourt riding in the federal riding redistribution process rather than eliminating the riding in the proposed approach. I am a former resident of the Scarborough Agincourt riding and want to highlight the following as important reasons to preserve the riding rather than re-distribute to surrounding regions:

• distinct historical and cultural significance of the area - the Agincourt area is home to the oldest elementary and secondary schools in all of Scarborough, and was its own village before Scarborough was established. Presently, it is uniquely known for being home to a large number of the Chinese diaspora and all of the unique things that come along with that
• growing population - new developments in the Agincourt riding are contributing significantly to the density of the area, i.e. a higher number of residents for the area as it exists today. Multiple new condominium complexes have either just been finished in the last few years or in development which will result in a higher number of residents in the area that will have reduced representation as a result of the proposed change
• implications for representation at other levels of government: the provincial and municipal government align their ridings with the federal government's decisions - resulting in reduced representation not only at the federal level due to this change, but at the provincial and local level as well. This is especially problematic for a riding that has a large lower income and English as a second language population that is already poorly represented and has trouble engaging with the democratic system

Please reconsider eliminating the Scarborough Agincourt riding - although a change in boundaries to that riding may be appropriate, eliminating it altogether would not do justice to its residents and unique demographic and historical position in our city, province, and country.

Jenn