Pubdate: Sat, 22 Apr 2006 Source: Maple Ridge News (CN BC) Copyright: 2006 Maple Ridge News Contact: http://www.mapleridgenews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1328 Author: Phil Melnychuk, Staff Reporter DRUGS, TREATMENT AND THORNHILL FOCUS OF MLA'S TOWN HALL MEETING The problem got so bad in one neighbourhood, said one woman at the town hall meeting Thursday, residents had to resort to their own measures to drum out the marijuana growers. Kids and seniors wrote down licence plates and took photos of suspicious vehicles. Grow-ops and crime were just one of the topics of MLA Randy Hawes' town hall meeting that covered everything from the health hazards of Zonolite to the health hazards of non-functioning septic fields. In the dimly lit lounge above the Golden Ears Winter Club, about 50 people tossed questions at the representatives of three levels of government. "It's a big problem," Maple Ridge Mayor Gordy Robson said of the drug issue. "We're on it as hard as we can be. We probably have more than 500 [grow-ops] of them in town." While the district's new bylaw requires regular inspection of rental premises and allows it to recover all police and fire department costs from dismantling drug houses, there's little support from the courts in sentencing, said Robson. For Hawes, legalizing marijuana in Canada would be a disaster. That would result in clampdowns at the border. Marijuana, he said, "is not harmless," and is a gateway to other drugs. But locking up drug addicts isn't the answer, Robson added later. "No one level of government can address this effectively," said MP Randy Kamp. The new federal government has tougher penalties for drug trafficking and firearms offences as one of its first five priorities, he pointed out. Graham Mowatt, though, noted people are becoming addicted to crystal meth, yet the provincial government is downsizing Riverview Hospital and wouldn't allow Robson to open a residential drug treatment centre for youths. "It makes no sense," Mowatt said. Hawes, however, said he's lobbying Fraser Health to change its funding model aE" to allocate more dollars to private drug-treatment facilities and to arrange funding so it follows the addict, rather than simply a set number of beds. Water, and lack thereof, for residents of Thornhill also came up at the meeting. Jacques Richard, formerly with the Thornhill Residents Coalition, wanted to know if the district will bring in water services to the area. A petition with 147 names is making that request. But Robson said some residents want services on Thornhill and some don't. Bringing in services could change the area, he said and if the new official community plan says Thornhill should remain as is, they should find a way of supplying water without fostering development. Peter Barnes, however, wanted the water issue more carefully examined. He asked the trio if they'd participate in a forum on the Thornhill acquifer. Following the March 20 collision involving a motor vehicle and a horse on 132nd Avenue, a voter asked about horseback safety. But Robson said the key is getting horses off the road and on to their own trails. A solution in the 132nd Avenue area soon may be found, he said. "We've got to get the horses off the street." Robson said as the region grows, more people will be moving to Maple Ridge. But he said he wants a compact community, which is financially viable. But he pointed out the district has to continue to broaden its tax base so more tax revenue comes from industrial/commercial rather than residential. Currently, more than 90 per cent of the district's tax revenue come from homeowners. He also renewed his call for amalgamation of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, noting many services already are shared. - --- MAP posted-by: SHeath(DPF Florida)