Dear Editor:
Re: Elizabeth Fry project welcomed, Letters to the editor, The Record, May 23, by Marianne and Andrew Phillips.
We, as immediate neighbours of the proposal, find it difficult to accept your points of view when you reside safely two full blocks away from the proposal, which takes away residential lots to satisfy a commercial venture.
As residents of Kelly Street adjacent to the proposed Elizabeth Fry project at 273/275 Sherbrooke St. would like to comment on the issue at hand. We believe the new project on Kelly and Sherbrooke streets will most definitely be an intrusion to the residential community. The amendment to the official community plan will most certainly affect the property values of the surrounding residential housing in the immediate area - unlike yours two full blocks away. For your information, more child care and non-market housing issues are being met in the Brewery District and Victoria Hill areas in the immediate future. You also might be interested in knowing that the nurses at Royal Columbian Hospital have voiced their concerns of a daycare in Elizabeth Fry's environment.
Also the proposed project design is intrusive and cramping of the neighbourhood's character. We, as immediate neighbours of Elizabeth Fry, experience daily ongoing issues associated with the clientele and their visitors at Elizabeth Fry's present facility. The smoking, drinking, drugs and loitering is enough to tolerate without moving these issues any closer to the residential area.
Before purchasing our house in Sapperton, we were fully aware of Elizabeth Fry and the issues that were associated with its present location. Like other neighbours, we were accepting of Elizabeth Fry's work and have shown great patience and acceptance of their clients. I feel strongly that all would continue to work with Elizabeth Fry if it remained in its present location at 402 East Columbia St. However, to expand into the neighborhood and obviously increase the number of clients is unacceptable, and a better location is needed to be found.
We also consider Sapperton to be very welcoming and want it to continue to attract families, not commercial/institutional development.
We are strongly opposed to this proposed rezoning.
Mike and Joan Begg, New Westminster
