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Letters: Clean up for health and jobs

Dear Editor, The City of Richmond has fallen out of step with real needs, and real costs, and reality itself when it comes to the Coronavirus.
richmond city hall

Dear Editor,

The City of Richmond has fallen out of step with real needs, and real costs, and reality itself when it comes to the Coronavirus.

On one walk yesterday, easily a dozen homes abandoned, left to being overran by vegetation and vermin infestation, abandoned vehicles next door to a school, again rat infestation. A home under construction for almost a year now, with zero cleanup being done, it is fenced but not locked so has become a dumping ground.

While going past it the fellas doing the drywall decided it was a good place to clean up, so pieces of drywall, even the chips and dust were swept out of their van and trailer and thrown on the ground. These are described as restricted dangerous materials that can NOT be dumped, but must be contained and enclosed to be dropped off at the proper facility.  Grass at these different abandoned sites growth to 3 feet and over. 

South Arm has opened its outdoor activity areas, but there is no distancing. I am glad to see people being active, but shoulder-to-shoulder contact of dozens of kids playing basketball, means everyone brought whatever they have been in contact with to send home with everyone else there. That alone would mean a couple of hundred people. The internet is not turned on at South Arm, but every outdoor light is, 24/7, even the field lights.

I am sure this is happening at all community centres, the schools are also just leaving their lights on outside all day. The grass cutting at the schools seems more regular but less caring. Grass is on the sidewalks, hills and around trees and goal posts it is not cut at all.  Their equipment has hit and knocked down fences, weeks ago, not repaired. Not surprisingly, ad the last time it took two years to come out replace a broken piece.  Why, in today's world are we using real wood for this type of fencing? Fencing made from recycled plastics is maintenance free, is not going to rot, as is the story with wood being buried in ground as wet as ours.

The City has hundreds of people waiting to get to work, they should be doing city wide inspections, to keep our city clean, they can help to make sure some kind of distancing is taken place and enforced or shut down for that day. This is not private businesses that are in a for profit situation, but our own city that instituted the rules that they are the absolute worst at following.  So let's put some people to work and make it as safe as we can.

One more important item is the outrageous speeds cars are hitting, and a complete lack of enforcement from the RCMP.

Jim Crighton 

RICHMOND