A playground on the site of the former tent city is a good idea, but it should be because a playground is needed there, not just because it鈥檚 a handy way to keep campers off the property.
The tents are gone from the courthouse lawn, and the cleanup has begun. It will cost an estimated $350,000 to repair the wear and tear caused by the makeshift community that occupied the site for the better part of a year. And then what?
sa国际传媒 Housing Minister Rich Coleman said in a news conference last week that whatever goes on the provincially owned site will be 鈥渁 credit to the local community, rather than some passive space.鈥� He made a casual reference to a playground, but it wasn鈥檛 an announcement 鈥� the site鈥檚 future is in the hands of the sa国际传媒 Ministry of Technology, Innovation and Citizens鈥� Services. That ministry has said pest control is necessary before remediation begins.
In a statement, the ministry said it would consider the best design and future use for the site 鈥渋n discussion with the City of Victoria and area neighbours,鈥� as part of the remediation process.
Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps has seized on the playground idea, calling it 鈥渂rilliant.鈥�
鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing lots of young families living downtown, and we don鈥檛 have a playground downtown,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he downtown population is growing, and people are having kids, and they鈥檙e not able to afford a single-family dwelling in Fairfield.
鈥淧ut a playground there and everybody will be happy.鈥�
It certainly sounds like a cheerful counterpoint to the controversy that has dogged the site since homeless people first pitched tents there last November. The encampment brought much-needed attention and action to the issue of homelessness, but at considerable cost. It created a patch of squalor and dysfunction in the downtown, and caused disruption and anxiety for people living in the area.
Tent city鈥檚 neighbours understandably believed their concerns and well-being were being ignored, while attention and resources were lavished on the transients, some of whom flouted the law and rules of civility. A playground would be a welcome change.
Before the tent city, the courthouse lawn was a green and shady space. People ate their lunches there, took breaks from busy work days. The province could do worse than to restore the property to its original state.
But now there鈥檚 an opportunity to do more, and a playground could do much to liven up the downtown. It could do much to offset the grimness that often unfolds within the walls of the nearby courthouse.
It would also preclude the possibility of more tents being pitched there.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 a playground, there is no camping overnight,鈥� said Helps. 鈥淭hat is what our bylaw says.鈥�
A playground is a good idea, but it should not be merely an ad hoc solution to homeless camping. If a playground is chosen, it should be done with good planning and thorough consultation with the city and the neighbours. And the issue of homelessness should not be allowed to fade away.
Just don鈥檛 take the Abbotsford approach. In 2013, that city (which later had to apologize) dumped chicken manure on a site where homeless people had gathered with their tents and possessions.
A playground beats chicken manure any time.
