Editor:
Re: Shocking discovery, May 21 letters.
It was with great interest I read the letter from Glen Hopkins, regarding his family getting “shocked” while riding their bikes under the power lines in West Rosemary Heights.
I contacted BC Hydro, as I walk that way and have had sparks flying off my umbrella on wet days, as well as have experienced prickles in my feet regardless of the weather. A neighbour reports getting prickles in her hand when picking up her dog’s waste under these power lines.
BC Hydro’s response was that the area meets acceptable guidelines, and that some people just have more electricity in their bodies than others and that can result in more frequent shocks. I encourage others to contact BC Hydro to make a complaint, as perhaps we can get better resolution to this issue.
I’d like to take this issue further. I’d like city council to take a step back from approving every available space in sight for housing, leaving just areas that are not able to be developed – such as under the power lines – as the only ‘green spaces’ for tens of thousands of people who live in the area.
There are 550 homes being built near 34 Avenue at 152 Street, as well as another 44 proposed for 36 Avenue and 150 Street, and more, still, proposed for the vicinity around the new pedestrian bridge. Add this to the hundreds of townhomes being built on Croydon Drive, and even more in the Grandview Heights area.
Please, let schools, hospital, roads, transit and green spaces catch up to the development that is already completed, before adding more.
We had to wait seven years for a playground in our neighbourhood, yet housing developments certainly don’t take that long. Both elementary schools in the Rosemary Heights area have portables, and our catchment high school, Earl Marriott Secondary, is bursting at the seams and, at this rate, will shortly have double the capacity it was built for.
The roads are so congested, at times you wait for three lights to get from 34 Avenue to 32 Avenue. The entrance and exit on Highway 99 are so crowded that, in the afternoon rush hour, people are pulling over to the side of the freeway, as the light on 32 Avenue diversion road doesn’t allow enough cars to get through.
And we have a green space that isn’t user-friendly, because you’re likely to get a shock when you do use it.
I realize people need somewhere to live, and South Surrey is a great area.
Just pace the development better and let the infrastructure catch up.
Cindy Van Oosten, Surrey