DRUG USERS INVADE A PARK

Rampant drugged hooligans running amok or excessive youthful exuberance?

Just what is going on in a south Burnaby park appears to be in the eye of
the beholder.

"It's wicked - it's a bad situation," said Gary Dudley, a resident of Silver
Avenue, which borders Maywood Park. "Older people are afraid to walk through
there."

The park lies between Silver and McKay avenues, a broad strip of green just
off Maywood Street, and Dudley said the situation is at its worst at night -
starting around 7 p.m. and going past midnight.

"It's out of control there," he said. "There's roughly 30 kids doing drugs
there.

"The problem is that the addicts are there all night. It's wild out there in
the park at two in the morning."

He said both marijuana and crack cocaine are a problem, and most of the
teens appear to be between 15 and 19 years old.

"Outside my window, I can see it when they load the pipe (for crack)."

Staff Sgt. Reid Knutson, district commander of Burnaby RCMP's southwest
district, disagrees.

"I can't substantiate that," Knutson said. "We have no evidence to support
large numbers (doing drugs)."

He explains that Maywood is a neighbourhood green space and open to all.

"There is no curfew in place for that park, so people can be in that place
throughout the night," he said. "The reality is, it's a park. There's
nothing that precludes (young people) from being in the park."

Knutson said Maywood was a popular place for young people, "but we don't
have any evidence to support (that) they're doing anything illegal."

He said anything going on in the park outside the law was probably more alco

hol than excessive drug use, and there would be fewer people involved.

Knutson said there were nine incidents in the park reported to police from
January to December 2002 and, from January to July 2003, 17 incidents, seven
of them in May - which the staff sergeant said may have been grad-related.

Generally, complaints have been about noise, a problem that's exacerbated by
the fact the park is surrounded on all sides by homes where people keep
windows open during the summer.

"The issue is noise," Knutson said, noting it was mostly just ordinary loud
talking and laughter. "Youth congregating and noise."

Following complaints, they did check the park - but again, he said, there
were no signs of excessive drug use when police looked.

"They have not been finding a lot of needles, because that was a question
that we had," he added.

"I've got nothing at all that would leave me to believe (there's a problem
with drugs)."

Dudley said enough women walking home have been robbed of their money that
many are afraid to go out in the area.

Police response has been varied, he notes.

The most recent call brought prompt and polite action - but Dudley also
claimed at least one officer recently told a woman not to carry a purse,
which was not a good enough response, Dudley said.

Police should get out of their cars for an occasional walk through the park,
he said, noting one of the most popular areas for the users to congregate is
a bench that can't be seen by a car driving past.

Either the municipality or the police should put more of an effort into
getting rid of the problem, Dudley said.

"They've got to do something to clean it up," he said. "I'd like somebody to
do something about it.

"It's an ongoing situation. It's as bad as (Vancouver's) Main Street."

Knutson said they have made a number of efforts to deal with the problems at
Maywood.

During the summer, school liaison officers - who know the teens - have gone
by the park and talked to the young people about not making too much noise,
a tactic Knutson said had some success.

The district office has also asked police on patrol to increase the number
of times they pass by or through the park, in their cars and on foot, 24
hours a day.

They've been working with the city's parks, recreation and culture
department, which has had staff from the South Central Youth Centre drop by
Maywood Park, according to Kate Friars, department director.

"We've had some success, but there's still noise," Friars said, adding
they're pleased with how the discussions between staff and local youth went.
"To the best of my knowledge, there's been a positive response from the
young people."

Knutson said he's also asked the Burnaby Citizens' Crime Watch to increase
its patrols around the park.

"I haven't really received anything from them to indicate anything unusual
going on," he noted.

Knutson explained they've worked with the parks department to bring Crime
Prevention Through Environmental Design to Maywood Park. Shrubs have been
removed and cut back, trees have been pruned and some benches removed, all
in the aid of improving sight lines and discouraging lingering.

"We've done a number of initiatives there, and we're continuing on," Knutson
said.