Editor, The News:
The solution to the homeless problem, like a lot of our problems, can be found by observing nature.
People used to be allowed to feed bears. They would feed the bears because they liked them and thought they were helping them out.
There are two main problems.
First, many more bears started to show up. Secondly, some of the bears became aggressive and damaged things, made a real mess.
The solution is to look at each individual bear. The bears who are too aggressive are shot.
For criminal types, we have correctional facilities.
Some of the people, for whatever reason, can no longer look after themselves and so are sent to a facility.
For people, we need addiction and mental health treatment facilities.
Some of the bears just need habitat.
We could buy up some land in Maple Ridge, strip all the buildings off of it and plant forests. But that would be too expensive.
There is much habitat outside of Maple Ridge. It is equally unreasonable to expect to build housing locally for all the homeless.
This area is expensive. Many of us live here because the even more expensive areas we grew up in are now out of our means.
We changed cities, provinces, and even countries rather than live under sheets of plastic or in tents on the side of the road.
A quick check reveals houses in small towns all across Canada that can be had for about a tenth of the cost of the average house in Maple Ridge.
People move away at all stages of life to live better.
Many homeless and struggling people would do far better in other parts of Canada.
Michael Patterson
Maple Ridge
Don’t feed the rats?
Editor, The News:
I had set up a bird feeder in my back yard recently. It attracted wildlife that was a pleasure to see. Then, one day, I noticed a rat scurry across the lawn to feed at the leavings. I had to remove the feeder, as it was unfortunately attracting other pests.
Most of us residents know what a Caring Place Maple Ridge is, but the solution to our homeless problem is quite simple: remove the feeder.
Julia Garland
Maple Ridge
Housing not solution
Editor, The News:
We have had much discussion on the homeless camp on Cliff Avenue.
Housing is not the solution to the problem, it is at most a temporary bad and dangerous fix and should not even be considered by our mayor and council.
I would refrain from seeking advice from the Pivot Legal Society, as, in my view, it has its own agenda and not the interest of our community.
Why do we attack the effects of a problem and not the cause?
As long as we do nothing to eradicate the cause, we will always have the problem and waste countless resources.
It appears that the honest law-abiding , taxpaying citizen have no rights or protection
The mayor and council should do what they have been elected to do, which is govern. If they are incapable of this, they should resign and call a by-election.
Another costly move, however, maybe cheaper in the long term.
The citizens of Maple Ridge and B.C. should petition the premier to enact municipal recall legislation.
Then maybe the elected municipal officials would be more accountable.
Len Lovering
Maple Ridge