Editor, The News:
Re: Funding for temporary homeless shelter in Maple Ridge extended (The News, March 11).
I am writing this as a concerned taxpayer of Maple Ridge.
I don’t think I have to explain how we find ourselves in this situation.
From Cliff Avenue tent city to the supposedly temporary shelter at the old Sleep Shop, it has been a spiral straight down hill.
Now we are facing an even bigger challenge: 61 rooms that B.C. Housing is insisting will be low barrier housing.
Minister Rich Coleman obviously does not know what he is talking about. Low barrier does not work.
It would appear to be well supported by our mayor and council. That confuses me. How could they possibly support this? It is ruining our town. They have all enabled the drug addicts to continue their unhealthy lifestyle.
We do not want to live with this way of life. The addicts have chose their life and the way they wish to live it, but that does not mean we must enable them to do it.
For some strange reason, our MLA, Doug Bing, seems to think it is OK to let our mayor eat her words about her foolish statement about fixing the homeless situation.
Whatever intentions of our mayor, we have learned since October that low barrier housing does not work.
We are now faced with Coleman and B.C. Housing saying it is the only housing they are offering.
B.C. Housing should be helping low income, not low barrier housing.
I have to question the reasoning behind this housing. Why are we taking the responsibility for the mentally ill and the drug entrenched people?
This issue is provincial.
Build facilities for them. They need professional help, not enabling to the point of multiple overdoses per day.
This is a dire situation. We are being forced to accept this and it is not something we can accept.
There will be a rally this Saturday March 19, 11 a.m. at the Quality Inn.
Hopefully our mayor will come forward and help us save our town.
Premier Christy Clark appears to have placed mental issues into housing issues.
A cop out on all their parts.
Pamela McDonagh
Maple Ridge
‘Unacceptable’
Editor, The News:
Re: Funding for temporary homeless shelter in Maple Ridge extended (The News, March 11).
This suggestion is totally unacceptable.
Many of us who are in close proximity to the previous Cliff Avenue situation are well aware of the issues of property loss and other neighborhood issues that this escalating situation has caused over the past years and are no longer sympathetic to the plight of these people.
Their activity and presence have done nothing to help their situation and the enabling of the continuing drug abuse by the various so-called supportive means has only invited further influx of more individuals who care not for regulation, disciplined behavior or contribute to the community.
There is no accountability to anyone, it seems, and this solution will do nothing but exacerbate the previous ugly situation in the neighborhood, not to mention the poor businesses that are trying to operate in the immediate area. This will kill business, devalue property, and cause undue stress similar to what happened last summer.
The idea of a taxpayer-funded drug house will travel fast and far, believe me.
Just so you know, as long-time taxpayers in this community and the province, we get more and more disappointed in the authorities’ approach to dealing with this ridiculous, ongoing situation.
Ron and Catherine Thomey
