Mayor Linda Thompson and Councillors
Municipality of Port Hope
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Re: Winter safety issues arising from inadequate snow clearing on Wellington Street sidewalks
The time to fix the roof, they say, is when the sun is shining. Now is the time to address a winter safety issue that affects the residents of Wellington Heights, which is my neighborhood in Port Hope.
Last winter, in several messages (two sent to Councillor David Turck and two sent to Director Peter Angelo, with copies to Councillor Turck) I highlighted conditions and suggested remedies to a problem affecting the safety of people who use the sidewalks of Wellington Street. A copy of my final message to Mr. Angelo, complete with photographs of Wellington Street sidewalks, is shown below. For an understanding of the matter, I ask that you either read this message or view the entire correspondence, which I posted online to my Wellington Heights blog.
In that message, I summarized my suggested remedy to Mr. Angelo as follows:
1) that your staff use whatever methods necessary to remove the piles of snow currently blocking the Wellington Street sidewalk at these locations;
2) that you work with the owners and managers of Wellington Street apartment buildings to ensure that sidewalks remain unblocked for the rest of this winter.
Last winter was difficult for people attempting to keep their sidewalks clear of snow. It was difficult for the residents of Rosevear Boulevard, where I was living at the time. It was difficult for the owners and managers of apartment buildings on Wellington Street. In one of his messages to me, Mr. Angelo expressed his determination to meet and work with the managers and owners of Wellington Street apartment buildings to resolve the problems. Those problems weren't successfully resolved last winter; I am hoping that some proactive efforts now will prevent them from recurring during the winter to come.
Thank you for considering my request about this public safety issue.
