BROADWAY END OF DRIVE A DRUG DEALERS' UTOPIA

To the editor:

A smile of chagrin erupted when I read your article "2004 a better year for
Drive's law-abiding citizens," Oct 24.

While the supposed street level improvements to the Commercial Drive area
between "Venables to just south of 12th" sounds like a great accomplishment
for all of the businesses peddling cheap sustenance, I am sad to say that
the increased police presence in this area has not solved anything for the
blocks around the SkyTrain station, which have become a relative utopia for
street level activities such as open drug dealing and open drug use.

Walking to the Safeway from my house with my six-year-old has become
"running the gauntlet" of people openly smoking crack. My neighbour
approached me in tears this week stating that she could not get access to
her car because inebriated individuals were using it as a meeting place.

She approached a local business and their security guards to help out and
call the police, and they never showed up. As well, the security guards
flippantly stated to her that this area is going to hell and they were not
going to accompany her to the car. All of this happened while she was with
her eight-year-old son.

For all the attention that the Da Kline Cafe has attracted, at least
whatever they were doing was discreetly run for several months without much
attention. Now, the police are trying to save face regarding their No
Tolerance policies, yet as usual, it is all for show. It has not solved
anything by pushing street dealing from one block to another; it just
systematically ruins one family neighbourhood after another.

The worst thing is that it is our children witnessing these activities on a
daily basis, and what was once a nice area to walk around in has become very
unwelcoming.

In the end, it is to the detriment of these Commercial Drive businesses, for
it drives people like myself into our cars and out to "safer areas" to spend
our money. And that is what this is really about, right?

Michelle Martin, Vancouver