Dear Editor
Re: Derelict building could be revitalized, Inbox, New West Record, Jan. 23. Like Colleen, I am saddened to see the old New Westminster Gas Company building being, essentially, demolished through neglect on the part of the city. As Colleen points out, the province did offer the building to our city for $1. The province also offered to pay the costs of decontamination of the site. Despite these facts, a historic building has become an eyesore and will soon be lost to us along with the opportunity to use it as a stimulant for growth in the area.
What concerns me most, however, is the fact that there is a creek that runs through the property that is, as the city well knows, leaching the contaminants out of the site and depositing them in the Fraser River via the storm drains.
Our city council needs to stop neglecting this site and the environmental damage it is causing to the river that built this city in the first place. I participated in the consultation process the city conducted around this and there is, and has been for many years, a good plan on the books. Let's get on with it. Hopefully our new mayor agrees?
Ross Gibson, New Westminster
