If you build it they will come. The weeds and trees, that is. It seems to me that the plan in Castlegar is to develop gardens, plantings and in some cases parks and they will, for long periods of time, look after themselves. True the city does hire students in the summer to mow and weed but are there enough to look after the amount that there is to maintain?
Perhaps they should hire more. Is there enough full time staff to look after these areas at other times? Is it okay to mow the boulevards only for special events such as Sunfest. Take a look at the planted areas along Columbia, Third and Fourth as well as the parking lot across from the Columbia Basin Trust building. The weeds are taking control.
It seems time only allows for the weeds to be covered by bark mulch annually. If you take a look, they seem to thrive in this. The city, each spring, distributes beautiful hanging baskets, which are well maintained and the Sculpture Walk Group adds the interesting and wonderful sculptures that are well set off by the weed filled gardens.
A plan is in the works to add more development to Millenium Park. The exercise area, outdoor theatre, bike circuit and run of the river ponds will be attractive to many Castlegar citizens and visitors. Surely it will allow for much greater use of a park that already is an attractive area for many daily visitors.
Of concern to me is, will these areas be left to maintain themselves as some of the resting spots are now, where weeds control the planted areas and trees lift and crack the cemented areas. Can we expect some of those who wilfully damage these areas begin to respect them when we don’t seem to care?
Is there a maintenance plan for city properties within it’s boundaries or is the plan one of, If time allows? In my view it is time to take greater care of our public space.
Perhaps some of the residential and business owners could look out front and give a helping hand. Perhaps it’s time to hire more city staff. Will the new developments in Millenium be maintained?
After spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, I certainly hope so. What do you think? Let the city council and city staff know.A concerned citizen Kathy Gregory,Castlegar
