Editor, The News:
Re: City tries to put leash on loose dogs.
My dogs and I have always walked the dikes in Maple Ridge and we are to share with the joggers, the dog walkers and, of course, the cyclists.
The dikes are not a place to be used as a speedway for you guys on your bikes.
Many times I have almost been run over.
This is the reason you are complaining about dogs being off-leash, even when they are on a leash you are trying to run us over.
READ ALSO: Letter: ‘Ticket off-leash dogs on Maple Ridge dikes.’
I have experienced it many times.
So if the bylaws officers are going to start ticketing dog-walkers, then the same rules apply to bike riders.
The taxpayers have spent millions on bike lanes. Use them and maybe the dikes are not the place to ride.
Just remember, the dikes are to be shared with everyone, not just for people with their own agendas.
Debbera Rail
Maple Ridge
‘It is a problem’
Editor, The News:
The Thornhill development has been a contentious issue for years, and regardless of who is on council, it seems to favour the developers.
Our primary concern is water.
The top of the hill is covered with forest, which contains water and forms the natural aquifer that feeds our wells …
Once stripped and paved, residents below stand to lose their water.
What is the value of the proposed lots without water?
Even in my advanced years, I have not become cynical enough to suggest this is part of the plan, but it is very worrisome and may lead to years of court battles, using taxpayers money, and that will only be part of the cost.
Developing this area will not be like digging in the sandy ground close to a river or the abundant soil at the base of local mountains. Thornhill is somewhat of a geological anomaly in that it is a huge hump comprised mostly of solid basalt, with only a thin layer of ground.
This is one of the hardest forms of rock on the planet, and speaking from experience, having built here, it is a problem.
We had to blast for septic, basement and pool.
The latter required considerable effort and expense. The first two charges only pulverized the subterranean layer, but could not break the top. A third attempt was needed.
The powder man in charge asked me if he could take a sample to show his boss, should they work here again.
The point is that developing in this area will require trenches for not just water, but sewer and storm drains that will be about eight feet deep, four feet wide and run for miles.
I was told by a long-term resident that a study years ago concluded that the cost just to get water to the area would cost hundreds of millions of dollars …
You may live far from Thornhill and not care about it, but if approved, it will cost you.
L. Duncan
Maple Ridge
READ ALSO: Council balks at new groundwater maps in Maple Ridge’s long-term plan.
editor@mapleridgenews.com
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