Article content Re. “Encampment raids did more harm than good,” Opinion, Aug. 15 Chris Wiebe’s opinion piece expressing support for allowing encampments totally omits all the relevant information as to why encampments of any sort should not be allowed.
As a lawyer, he seems to have missed the class about trespassing, which is illegal on either private property or public property. The encampments were a menace to public safety and led to criminality of all sorts. Edmontonians were afraid to use their streets and public parks.
Given that there are homeless shelters available, there is no need for the homeless to illegally occupy our streets and parks. I, and most Edmontonians, fully support the police and the City of Edmonton in their removal of encampments. Wiebe and his organization, Coalition for Justice and Human Rights, would do far more constructive work in lobbying Danielle Smith and her UCP government to provide more aid to the homeless, which is the province’s responsibility and not that of the City of Edmonton.
Gerhard Henkemans, Edmonton I read your article “ City Faces Tough Budget Decisions ”, and see that we are about to watch the annual “council shell game” once again. And wow, have the stakes gone up. Administration came up with a lofty 13-per-cent draft budget, which includes all the dream wishlist items, and for the next while we will be entertained by a lot of handwringing and platitudes about fiscal responsibility.
In the end, they will remove some of the obvious throwaway items and we will be expected to be grateful for a budget in the eight-per-cent range. Our inflation rate is 2.7 per cent, so what can they blame the rest of the increase on? Trot out COVID, but that one is already getting tired.
Population growth should bring in extra tax revenue, but budgets seem to only view the extra cost. Is it possible that part of the real fault could be in the poorly designed capital construction policies? How about a lack of oversight on expense management? Regularly, we hear that the other levels of government need to step up with more money for pet projects. Perhaps it would be well to heed a quote from some time back, “We don’t have a revenue problem; we have a spending problem.
” Gary Friedel, Edmonton Re. “Senator, historian oppose plans to demolish former RAM building,” Aug. 13 Why do we keep destroying our history? Another “green space” will only create more area for homeless encampments.
Besides, there is already a park and parking around this beautiful, historic RAM building. Do not tear it down. G.
G. Davies, Edmonton.
