NEIGHBOURS TRYING TO RECLAIM THEIR STREET

One Battle Might Be Over But It Seems The War For Wellington Might Be
A Long One

In early April the city gave the landlord of the property in the 45700
block of Wellington Avenue a month to clean up after approximately 40
neighbours filed a petition complaining about old vehicles, kitchen
appliances and junk piling up in the yard.

The deadline was this week, and while much of the mess disappeared,
there is still concern about the revolving door of problem tenants.
One man who lives in the neighbourhood told the Times the real problem
with a couple of rental homes in the area is the landlords,
themselves, who seem unwilling or unable to get rid of tenants.

"The people that are in there right now are squatters," he said. "The
people that are living there are people that have slipped through the
cracks."

The man spoke to the newspaper on condition his identity not be
revealed for reasons of safety.

The issue at the Wellington property and another one nearby on Robson
goes beyond messy yards. Some in the neighbourhood worry about the
presence of drugs such as crystal meth, thieving rings, even gangs
taking root. The resident said often the properties are quiet during
the day but in the evening, 'zombies' can be seen coming around,
sometimes with goods in hand.

At the hearing in April, the landlord said he was having problems
getting rid of the tenants who owed rent. Mayor Clint Hames responded
he could try to recover his costs on unpaid rent without passing on
the problem to the city.

"I'd just as soon you solve this through arbitration," Hames said at
the time.

Recently, the city has been cracking down on grow-ops. On Monday city
council placed notices on the title of a property in the 45800 block
of Wellington and one at Cultus Lake Road. The notices point out the
sites are not safe and cannot be inhabited without being fixed.
Council also called show cause hearings for several similar properties
to be held on May 16.

While these actions might affect homes used to produce drugs, the
resident who lives near the Wellington and Robson properties knows the
homes used to sell and distribute narcotics are another matter. For
this, the police must be brought in.

The resident said the city and police have been helpful, and it's time
for others in the neighbourhood to take action by notifying the police
about suspicious activities.

"They're just not getting enough information," he said. "The police
need a break here. People need to warm up to the police a little. The
police are on our side."