Plans to modify Galt Gardens landscaping changes seating
By Justin Sibbet - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on June 29, 2024.
Herald photo by Justin Sibbet
New seating options are available for residents at Galt Gardens to replace old benches.LETHBRIDGE HERALDjsibbet@lethbridgeherald.com
Residents may have noticed some benches disappearing in Galt Gardens recently, but the City says this is nothing to be worried about.
Blair Richter, general manager of Parks with the City of Lethbridge, says some benches were simply removed after losing the slow battle with time.
“Some of the tables and benches were in poor condition, so we had them pulled out.”
He says this happens to coincide with the City looking at a new landscaping project that will see new seating arrangements in the downtown park, including a variety of unique designs from environmental to downtown classics.
“We’ve also put out some of those bistro sets that you’ve probably seen at Festival Square. Those have proven to be successful at that location as well as other parks in different cities, so we decided to try that approach as well.”
While there is no definitive date set for the upcoming Galt Garden landscape project, Richter says residents will not have to wait long.
“It’ll definitely happen this summer and then I believe some of those new seating options should arrive in about six weeks,” said Richter.
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Just say it . . . the benches and tables were burned and damaged by the thoughless criminals who have been allowed to take over our park, sleeping across pathways so we have to divert our walk, doing drugs openly, dealing drugs openly, threatening citizens walking through the park, trees have been burned and damaged and the building housing the washroms needs to be bulldozed because the washrooms have been destroyed by the criminals, who are not the truly homeless, but deviants who have no respect for anything or anyone, and destroy anything and everything and expect us to rebuild brand new for them.
There is no point, in putting any new funds into landscaping or replacing tables or benches until the city has the intestinal fortitude to take back our park from the criminals! Quit throwing away our tax dollars . . . you may as well burn in a burning barrel because it will get damaged just like many of the flowers in the flower pots downtown.
We want our park back!!! You have allowed these criminals to take over the park and push us into a small part of a block called Festival Square, surrendering the park to them!
It won’t be long before we see that $662,000 playground damaged . . . only a matter of time!
Those tables and chairs provided are getting damaged and disappearing into alleys in some cases.
You are not going to push these criminals out by landscaping or putting in more public facilities . . . this is a law enforcement issue!
The damages to the existing structures are so bad that they need to be replaced once we have our park back!
People are tired of this and leadership needs to listen now! There is anger behind closed doors so just because you think all is good, people are happy . . . think again!!!
We have moved to a newer level of determination in Lethbridge. After numerous meetings (of purposely avoiding the problem) we have another, made in Lethbridge Solution.
It would appear, after deep thought, that “Layering” has been determined to be Galts Saviour. Layering? You may wonder, what exactly is “Layering”?
Layering is the application of a world record number of “Layered Lipstick”! Never in the history of man has a single group, so focused, so determined, reached this number of Layers”! In every other case in history, the Pig has been recognized as a Pig but this group insists that it was a lack of will power that showed the Pig to be a Pig.
When asked by a local journalist as to why it still looked like a Pig! The leader of the group got rather indignant and said ” money must be spent to achieve the correct number of layers, anyone with half a brain can see we just need more layers”!
He further acknowledged: “That “yes” this strategy has been shown to be unsuccessful in the past, but that showed us that there was a “lack of commitment to layering”! Lethbridgians don’t give up! We will “Layer this Pig” until you do not recognize it as a Pig, that is our commitment!
We have a backup plan, if you standup and say: “ahhh it still looks like a Pig”? You will be blackballed! You, the journalist, will never mention the word “Pig” again! We are in “unknown territory” and “will spend as much taxpayer money as it takes” and you will document this effort as “Star Trek like”- “going where no man has gone before”!
The verbal diarrhea that you spew out of your mouth must make your butt envious!
Seriously ewingbt, this is why your idea of Police will fail. Too many people with their fingers in the pie with different commitment levels that continually result in a level of stupidity that destroys the underlying direction!
A perfectly good solution can be dilluted enough to fail. We have a group or groups that know, “Saboteur’s are us” works very well.
I would be careful not to comment while you are high on your painkillers Mr. Bremner . . . I have tried to be kind to you but it appears as you stated and expressed yourself at the ‘Is Lethridge is Dying’ meeting, that you are an A-HOLE . . . you self proclaimed it and it continues to manifest!
You misled all of us into thinking there would be a serious discussion on the issues in our city, but then tried to push your “brilliant” idea that building a camp by Kipp is the answer to all the issues on our streets!
I would agree to have a similar camp built in Standoff where it was last year, but not on the edge of the city. Your plan was not feasible in helping reduce issues on the streets, but no one could show you it would fail! You were insulted that Marshall Smith, Chief of Staff for Premier Smith, rejected your camp plans, and just kept pushing it on us to the point many people who came to the ‘Is Lethbridge Dying’ meeting wanted to discuss the issues, but you took over the meeting with your rejected “brilliant” idea!
I am not misleading anyone but expressing the truth and know what will reduce the issues in this city!
You don’t live downtown, you rarely come downtown, you don’t see the issues unfold everyday! Yet you stand in judgement over those of us who do!
I say again . . . Stop commenting when you are high on your pain killers.
The issue is lawlessness, so police along with drug courts are the people to deal with it!
You flip-flop like a fish out of water on the shore!
A lot of ignorance! Barry, ignore Dennis Bremner! Many members of the business community agree with you and value your commitment to our city and downtown!
Please continue your excellent work.
I agree RU Serious,
A fair shot. However, if you are suggesting what is being done has not been done before, elsewhere, you would be wrong. The “Lawlessness Committee” has been done in Brussels, the Hard line of Police in Liverpool, the Crusades of the Religious in Antwerp. None worked, the only thing that “appears” to work is if cities just give up and provide everything to the user to allow them to continue what they do!
If you believe the process is in its infancy and things will turn around with more effort then good for you. I hope it works out, however, I have seen that it doesn’t, so repeating the same thing expecting a different result just doesn’t work.
I am not criticizing anyone, over many many years as cities became the newest city to fight back, they repeated the same things that had failed elsewhere.
When you speak the truth on the “odds of success” then you are an A**Hole. Thats a given because like, every city in the past they want to believe they can beat this. I challenged those who insisted that downtown was safe. 3 years later, they no longer say that. What do you expect in the next 3?
Eventually you will face the reality that my idea was a no profit for me, and was the only thing that would save both Lethbridge and Standoff. No one will acknowledge it, even if proven right, so, an A**Hole I will remain because I don’t lie to others or myself.That does not mean you don’t try, so good on those that are.
you said: ……………Lethbridge Dying’ meeting wanted to discuss the issues, but you took over the meeting with your rejected “brilliant” idea!
Not sure where you got that from, were you there? I asked one question of Marshal Smith. The question was “Is there anyway you can proceed with your plan without killing the downtown”?
It was answered in 30 seconds or less and that was the end of it….took over the meeting????
I don’t live Downtown Lethbridge, but lived Downtown Ottawa for 9 years on the Corner of Laurier and Lyon. I once again predicted the outcome in Ottawa,ByWard Market was toast, I was correct, why? Guru? No, reptition of the same thing, YES.
Facts are extremely difficult to avoid!
This is not Ottawa or Europe and our issues are not the same! The issues in Edmonton are different than here or Calgary.
North America is waking up, tired of the progressive style of thinking that has allowed our streets, neighbourhoods and parks to be taken over by addicts and criminals and our cities taken over by gangs and organized crime!
They are all connected and I will not try to explain in length, as I have before Dennis . . . you are missing a lot and it is not just more boots on the ground for police, it also involves several other actions working simutaneously to be effective.
You look at this with tunnel vision and fail to see that while you move these people along from businesses and parks you are making sure they are not moving into other areas of the city, but going to the shelter, that taxpayers are paying for, with the soup kitchen and overdose prevention trailer there.
Police do not have to be the ones moving them along, just like police do not get involved moving along encampees, unless the other measures by city employees and social services fail. It isn’t that hard if you widen your view!
Please stop looking at this with tunnel vision!
Change is coming . . . people are fed up and in the US the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has recently ruled that cities can ban people from sleeping and camping in public places.
There are actions being taken to end this gong-show on our streets and those who make money from this crisis or who are planning to make money with their ‘schemes’, are apposed to ending this carnage that is destroying families and taking young lives!
All stop!! I end my response here since I am talking to a wall!
Please stop looking at this with tunnel vision!
First, for the plan to work, ie not pushing them out into Residential Areas (which has already occured) you would need two shelters. The mere fact that we have one will ensure the “secret process” does not work. Why won’t it work? For fear of tunnel vision, I will explain.
You have non-violent and the violent. Shelter operators know whom the violent are. So if you want this to work I highly suggest that you demand a second shelter. Otherwise the non-violent but still a criminal migrates away from the shelter.
“Lethbridge” is special afgument does not hold water. Granted their is indigenous/ white issues. But the same can be said for Gypsies in Europe.
Half the reason why we are in the predicament we are in is because “we are special” is used to change locgical outcome.
My tunnel vision, if I have it is well earned.
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You are not going to push these criminals out by landscaping or putting in more public facilities . . . this is a law enforcement issue!
Don’t agree ewingbt
Its not a law enforcenebt issue becase what you descrie is a babysitting issue. No police force can be “there as it happens”. So what you describe can happen at any moment during a 24 hour day. An officer can walk through Galt and as he turns the corner anyone of the issues you describe can occur.
So what you are really wanting is babysitting services and employ Police in those positions. WARNING (the A**Hole in me is breaking out)
Babysitting pushes them out of Galt, to London Park or Residential areas. So now we have travelling baby sitters that continue to move them about like deck chairs on the Titanic.
I think the LAPS is doing as well as any other Police Force in these circumstances. If you were to ask the LAPS if this is a policing issue (on the downlow) my impression would be they would say No. This is a social acceptability and tolerance issue and society sets those rules, not police! Once those tolerance issues are set, it creates new societal rules for Police.
ie. When is a Police Officer not nice? When Society has determined their tolerance has been adjusted and the Officer isn’t following the new code! Police are human, defecating on them makes them question the rule of law, like anyone else.So you may scream blue bloody murder that they vacate Galt and then some Pious Person then explains to the officer the inhumanity of what he/she is doing. Where will they go? Give them a break, we gotta wash their feet.
In pursuit of “tolerance” in a woke society, we have compromised that society and now struggle to live with those decisions.Just an A**Hole on medication interpretation, feel justified in ignoring if you wish.
(Told you my inner A^^Hole was active)
Happy Canada Day, everyone!
The verbal diarrhea that you spew out of your mouth must make your butt envious!
I stand for Barry, ewingbt! Give it a rest Bremner!
Stop throwing good money after bad! Reptriate the park, then revitalize!
Revitalization has done nothing for my business in the area and has changed nothing!
I’m curious how many businesses will be able to survive until the 2025 election. How much will change even in an election? Not just a few councilors—we have deadwood in leadership positions that need to be replaced.
We want somebody to uphold the current regulations for trespass, loitering, panhandling, pooing and peeing on open spaces, open sexual acts, threats and intimidation, and so on. Make use of the laws that exist! Enforce the current legislation!
This was recently made known to me by a friend and I will share with business owners and residents:
Defence — property
35 (1) A person is not guilty of an offence if
(a) they either believe on reasonable grounds that they are in peaceable possession of property or are acting under the authority of, or lawfully assisting, a person whom they believe on reasonable grounds is in peaceable possession of property;
(b) they believe on reasonable grounds that another person
(i) is about to enter, is entering or has entered the property without being entitled by law to do so,
(ii) is about to take the property, is doing so or has just done so, or
(iii) is about to damage or destroy the property, or make it inoperative, or is doing so;
I wouldn’t be to eager to enforce laws yourself, since many of these vagrants have some type of weapon, but it is good information to know!
What do the 2 security guards do in Galt Gardens? Are they there to just observe and report to someone? Open drug use, people sleeping on sidewalks and sleeping rough throughout park, fires: How much is it costing us just for someone to do nothing?