CRACK IS EASY TO FIND IN CITY; ARRESTS COME AS NO SURPRISE TO
SOME

Tuesday's climax of Project Crackdown overturned the seedy underbelly
of Peterborough's drug market.

With 45 individuals arrested and 129 charges laid, the investigation
has rung a major alarm bell - if you know where you're looking, it's
not hard to buy crack on the streets of Peterborough.

On the city's downtown streets, news of the investigation and the
ease at which an undercover officer was able to buy crack attracted
mix reactions. For some, it was a shock, for others, a reality that
comes as no surprise.

Ashley Lachmann, a 19-year-old who has spent her life living in
Peterborough, said she knows Peterborough has an abundance of drugs available.

"I always thought Peterborough had a drug problem," she said. "I
didn't think it was as bad until I moved down to Dalhousie Street,
that's one of the main areas you hear of drugs and stuff."

Recently, Lachmann said such drugs have had an impact on the people
and friends she knows. A 15-year-old she knows became a regular
ecstasy user and a close friend started using crack at 16.

"She just tried it once and she was hooked," she said. "I'm always
surprised how easy it is for (young people) to get drugs. It's not
hard to find. You just have to know the right person to get it."

There is not a drug on the market that can't be found in
Peterborough, Lachmann said.

"Cocaine, smack, PCP, crack, hash, OxyContin, Percocet ... they'll
get it for you," she said.

Morgan Dickson, 20, has lived in Peterborough for four years and said
while he knows many marijuana users, he didn't realize crack and
harder drugs were as prevalent.

"Pretty much everyone does weed, but I wasn't aware crack was so
available. Marijuana is a gateway drug, but so many people do it ...
it seems normal I guess," he said.

Dickson said people regularly approach him asking if he has weed to
sell or if he's interested in purchasing any, but he's never had
anyone approach him offering harder drugs.

"I know there are hard drugs but didn't know they were so easy to
get, especially for a small city," he said.

Trevor Riddle, a 21-year-old Fleming College student, agreed.
Marijuana is visible in Peterborough, he said, but he hasn't come across crack.

"I know a lot of people that smoke weed, but crack? I don't hang out
with anyone that does that," he said. "If I was looking, I'd probably
know where to look, but it's not my scene. I don't think it's a big
problem because I just don't see it, but I also don't go looking for it."

Elaine Boardman, 28, works in Peterborough and said the investigation
didn't surprise her one bit.

"Peterborough has marijuana and every time you have that, you have
the harder drugs," she said. "I see people that look like they're
high downtown, but I have never seen it done."

Lisa Campbell, 18, lives in Toronto, but frequently visits Peterborough.

She said crack is found everywhere and it should be no surprise to
find it in Peterborough.

"Is it a surprise? God no. Oshawa, Peterborough, Lindsay, the Durham
region ... anywhere you may go, it's everywhere," Campbell said.

"Crack is the most popular drug right now. People love it. It becomes
their entire life trying to get it."

Campbell said she knows better not to touch the stuff, but if she
wanted to, she knows she'd be able to find it here without much work.

"If I really wanted to, no, it wouldn't be hard," she said.