On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 20:27:04 -0400, Dave Smith
wrote:

B Vaughan wrote:

If you're on the American side, you can't miss them. My Italian
husband and I were there last summer and he was horrified that Canada
had allowed such monstrosities to be built so close to the falls. He
said that it was worse than the worst abusive construction he had ever
seen in Italy, and that's saying something. He refused to spend a dime
in Canada in protest.

It's not Canada. The federal government doesn't often get involved in municipal
zoning and building codes. It is the city of Niagara Falls that has allowed it to
happen. It's interesting that your Italian husband is so offended by it, since
the locals consider the Italian family factor to have had a lot of influence :-)

All the more reason why my husband would find it offensive. There is
little of that kind of thing in the part of Italy where I live. The
national government protects certain scenic zones as part of the
national heritage, but allows the details of the zoning to local
administrations. There have been some celebrated cases of corrupt
local governments turning a blind eye to vacation villas and even a
few hotels built in protected scenic zones. The national government
has in a number of cases required that completed buildings (including
at least one large hotel) be torn down, although they haven't been
tough enough to suit most Italians.

In any case, my husband says he's never seen anything in Italy as
egregious as the hotels overlooking Niagara Falls.

I think Ontario needs to have a good ecological re-education program
for it's urban planners or whatever they're called. Are they totally
in the pockets of big business?

Think "family" iffa you know what i mean.

You know, I find that "iffa" offensive.

--------
Barbara Vaughan

My email address is my first initial followed by my last name at libero dot it.