The city is making a gentle push to some businesses in Riel Park to spruce up their properties.
Responding to complaints the city has received over the years about unsightly premises, the city sent a letter earlier this month asking that business owners take care of problems like uncut grass, dismantled vehicles being stored on the road and other problems like excessive storage or garbage piling up.
City officials thought this was the best way to remind businesses that it is important for everyone to keep a clean, professional looking park, said Jim Killoh, manager of the city’s development branch.
“It wasn’t any one property. It was more just going back over recent times and the complaints that have come in,” he said.
The city has a community standards bylaw, but doesn’t intend to issue tickets to address what is a relatively minor problem, Killoh said.
“It was more of a proactive initiative, but if there are some particularly unkempt properties we may have to proceed with that option,” he said.
So far the response to the letter has been very positive and no one has seemed particularly upset, Killoh said. The vast majority of property owners aren’t a problem and the few businesses that are causing concerns have been open to cleaning up their properties.
Ivan Mayer, president of the Riel Business Association, said he welcomed the city’s letter. Mayer has been in the business park for 17 years and said the appearance has improved greatly over the years.
“There has been steady improvement, but there is still a ways to go,” he said.
Mayer agrees with Killoh that the vast majority of businesses in the park aren’t a problem, estimating that out of the 130 businesses, only eight or 10 have any issue at all.
“If we can get those eight or 10 properties cleaned up I think we will improve the looks of the park tremendously,” Mayer said.
Mayer has 22 tenants in the park in addition to his own business. In some cases the property owners may not be proactive enough in making sure their tenants keep the property looking nice.
“They have to make sure that their tenants are taking care of their location,” he said.
He said he’s talked with one of his tenants about a minor problem and he is confident it will be addressed.
Mayer said the city’s approach of talking with business owners rather than being heavy-handed is definitely the right way to go.
“You can get a lot further with honey than you can with vinegar,” he said. “I am quite confident that it will have the right effect.”
