The Mayor Has Not Answered My E-Mail

I sent an email to the mayor on Sept 10-10. I wanted to know what he was doing regarding his promise to take care of the issue I had with the City By-Law Office. It seems they are not able to find the person who illegally dumped items in my dumpster. Although I provided a photo including the person, their vehicle, and the license plate number, the City By-Law Office cannot research the license plate number. I was told they do not have access to the MPI database to find out who the person is.
Well, the Mayor, when he called me, said he would look into this personally. He said it is a shame that a citizen would take the time to report a crime and nothing is getting done about it. I guess the Mayor is just another person who is not doing anything about the illegal dumping of garbage in the dumpster in my back lane. I know it is just garbage. But what it really is, is the City By-Law office having By-Laws that cannot be enforced. And that, citizens of Winnipeg, should not be ignored.

Here is the letter I sent the Mayor, that is being ignored:

I would like to know the status of my issue sent to the City By-Law office regarding illegal dumping of garbage in the dumpster in my back lane. The mayor called me regarding this issue and said he would take care of it personally. I would like an update on what is being done with the issue, ticket number 405412 reported Aug 20. I was advised on Aug 26 that City By-Laws had no access to vehicle license information to process the ticket. On Aug 27 the mayor said he would take care of this issue for me.

Please advise.

I still want an answer on what is being done with the issue I reported. I am prepared to go to court and testify against the person who thought he had every right to dump his garbage in my dumpster. I do not consider my back lane a garbage dump that the rest of the city can use to deposit items they no longer want. As a citizen of this city, I demand something be done about this. And as a citizen of this city, I would think a promise the Mayor made to me would be kept.

Mr Mayor: I Have Enough Police Presence On My Street

To The Current Mayor and All Others Running For The Position:
I think I have enough police presence on my street already. It seems every time I stick my head out the door or look down the street there is a police car. This last week there were several police cars driving down my street. I had the police parked on the street visiting the rooming house two doors down twice this last week. And there were two police cars parked at the end of the street loading people into the back seat of one on Wednesday. We have enough police. Adding more police to the force and increasing the number of 911 operators is not going to fix Winnipegs problems.
The issue seems to be that the police have to keep coming back and revisiting the same issues over and over again. The police have to keep coming out to deal with problem houses day after day after day.
For issues regarding problem houses where we call to complain about noise, fights, threats of violence, breaking glass in the middle of the night, nothing seems to get done in the way of removing the problem. Our problem party house a few doors down had a visit from the police, where Child and Family Services were called. The kids and dog were removed. The next day the tenants were removed. The house was shovelled out a week later at the expense of the landlord, and the tenants moved back in.
The issues at the party house will continue to happen. The neighbourhood will continue to call the police. The police will continue to visit the residence as they can fit it into their schedule with all their other repeat issues that have no resolution. The kids will continue to be removed temporarily. The adults will be put up in some hotel so the house can get shovelled out. And they will get moved back in with new furniture and clothing to start the cycle over again.
The definition of insanity is to repeat the same action over and over again expecting different results. Lets stop the insanity.
Start giving power to the landlords who have the problem tenants so they can evict them for violations. Start punishing the tenants who party all night, break windows, threaten neighbours, and disrupt communities. Stop rewarding these tenants with free cleaning services, vacations in hotels while their residences get shovelled out, and providing new clothing and furniture. Stop punishing the neighbourhood with having to deal with the garbage that gets shovelled out of these houses. Stop punishing the neighbourhood with the huge influx of mice after the houses get shovelled out. Stop punishing the people who just want to live a peaceful life in their homes. And stop using police resources for problem houses filled with tenants who have absolutely no respect for themselves, their neighbours, their neighbourhoods, and their city.
Back before we were a nation, and the First Peoples of this land had their own laws, a problem person was banished. The person learned to live according to the rules of the next group or learned to live outside the group. It is time that people are held accountable for their actions. Stop rewarding bad behaviour.

Mattresses and Door taken by BFI truck

The BFI truck came down the lane this afternoon. They picked up the mattresses at the dumpster next to mine. They were even nice enough to take the door out of my dumpster so I can have my garbage picked up next garbage day. That was sure nice. Maybe it depends on the specific person working in the garbage truck whether they will take more items than are listed specifically on their "ticket". Anyway, my door has been picked up.

The mattresses were picked up from the neighbours dumpster, but the dumpster is almost full, and now there is garbage on the ground beside the dumpster. Maybe it was under the mattresses.

I went for my walk down the back lanes. More mattresses have been dumped on top of the already existing ones from a few days ago. On Aug 25 there were two couches, a door and two mattresses at this dumpster. Now there are an additional three mattresses.

And I found a few couches in the alley on the other side of me. They are everywhere. I bet there is not a back lane in the North End without a couch or mattress. Do the residents of the North End have that much money? Are they replacing their bedroom furniture monthly? I wonder where these mattresses are actually coming from.

When I was talking to the Mayor this morning, he asked me if I like the dumpsters. He asked if I would like them removed and go back to putting my own garbage out like the rest of the city. He said everyone should have the same service. I told him of course I want to be able to put my garbage out on garbage day and have it taken away. Of course I want to get rid of the dumpsters. Hmmm. I didn't know it would be that simple. Sam Katz asked little ol' me if I want to get rid of the dumpsters. The answer is YES.

A Call From The Mayor Himself

I got a call this morning. It was from Mayor Sam Katz. He likes my blog.
He called to tell me he is working with the Winnipeg Police on a plan to make the North End a safer place. Ya, Ya, like we havent't heard that before. But he seemed sincere. No, wait a minute, isn't there an election coming up?
While I had him on the phone I thought I might ask him a favor. See, I was talking to Kevin Seaford yesterday. He is at the City By-Law Enforcement Office, the city facade that is in place to placate the citizens. I had asked Kevin yesterday about their inability to process my "ticket" to go after the man who was doing the illegal dumping into my dumpster. Apparently Kevin has been after the powers that be for quite a while. He has been trying to gain access to the MPI database so they can process these complaints. He is quite frustrated in his office's inability to take care of these matters.
So here I am, with the Mayor on the phone. Sam said he read my blog. I asked him about the By-Law Departments inability to process my complaint. I asked him why they do not have access to the databases they need to do their jobs. His answer was similar to the City By-Law department. He said since the privacy laws have come in, they are restricted in what they have access to.
So I asked the mayor if I have to call the Police then, to have the issue taken care of. I suggested that the City By-Law department should actually be able to submit the vehicle license number to the Winnipeg Police, get the needed information back, and be able to process the complain. I told him the City By-Law department is currently just a fascade. He agreed that the City By-Law department should be able to get the information they need from the police.
Then he told me he was going to take care of my particular "ticket" personally. He was going to "personally make sure" it was taken care of. The mayor said it was just a shame that a citizen reports an illegal act and nothing is getting done about it.
I feel so much better, not. These are just words. A lot of words from City Hall.
What I want is results. I want to see that my ticket is taken care of. And I want to see the City By-Laws department actually being allowed to submit their requests for information to the Police and be able to get the needed information back.
Then I will believe what the Mayor told me. Then I may have a bit of faith in City Hall.