When will anyone pay attention ? Am I the only person who is affected by these issues ?
The issues with my commercial neighbour are a conglomeration of problems that are the result of 3 1/2 entities:
- the TSSA for the extremely poor vent placement that has poisoned my property since the renovated station opened. The TSSA is a completely self contained government entity, so it is utterly immune to any outside oversight !
- the Ministry of the Environment ignored and downplayed my numerous reports for 48 MONTHS. Only in the 49th month have they begun to investigate my complaints, using equipment to gather data. Granted, government policy changed sometime in 2020, making the Ministry of the Environment responsible for any emissions from the vent pipes – a situation the TSSA created. Now they have to clean up this mess !
- the Municipality grandfathered in the business next door. This grandfathering made it entirely exempt from City scrutiny. A new build would have code regarding things like lighting, traffic flow, parking, garbage storage, fencing, landscaping, buffer zones, parking spaces. It also would have probably addressed that due to the modifications made by relocating the underground gas storage taks, that tanker drivers would now directly drive past an elementary school, down several narrow residential streets dating from the early 1900’s, pass a residential facility for children with psychological issues, then turn up my narrow residential street. Yet the previous portal location for the used car lot was accessible by tanker drivers on an arterial road. This arterial road has zero traffic enforcement, and is plagued by aggressive drivers, speeding, impaired drivers, noisy modified vehicles. The traffic lights are operated by “beg buttons” that pedestrians have to push to activate traffic lights. Because there are no timed lights, drivers heading west have to take some risks to cross traffic to get to the gas station. Numerous t-bone type accidents have resulted. The street itself has many, many traffic accidents, and pedestrian and cyclist accidents and fatalities. The area defined by political boundaries has an astonishing amount of gas stations, most of which directly abut at least one residential property. There is no method for area residents to address things like traffic speed or dangerous design as this is an arterial road, and somehow exempt from scrutiny or remedy. The City appears to have no criteria for the operation of a 24 hour business with vehicle traffic, even one bordered on three sides by residential property.
- The owner of the gas station is the person who is legally responsible for these issues. The parent company has defined this property as being a “branded retailer” and has abdicated all issues with the design and operation to the individual owner . This absentee owner purchased a flip which was supposed to be a functional and profitable business and seems unaware of the chronic, serious issues with this property.
A couple of gems:
On April 20, 2022 a speeding driver lost control and hit one of the pumps in the middle of the night. Luckily the damage was only minor. I only found out about this when it was posted on a local Facebook group the next day.
I check my doors twice before I go to bed, and look out all the windows to make sure there is no one on my property. On June 26, 2022, I looked out the north window and saw something I couldn’t understand. Was it a bag of torn garbage, dragged across the road ? Was it a dead dog ? No – it was a human, dressed in black clothing, completely collapsed and unconscious partially on the street, partially on the station’s sloped curb. I got dressed to investigate. Was this person injured – hit by a car ? Or was this another opioid collapse ? When I got there, there was no blood or obvious injuries, and the person, a man, was breathing. I had to bang on the sliding window of the station, as the sole attendant was away from the counter. I didn’t have a phone so I told him about the guy – out of his range of visibility – and said he needed to call 911 or something. While I waited for someone to show up, I stood by the guy, so he wouldn’t get run over. The police did arrive quickly, who called an ambulance, so I went home. They shone their headlights on the guy on the road, so at least he was visible. I don’t know if Nalaxone had to be administered but after a few minutes with the ambulance the guy walked down the street.
This doesn’t address the drug use on site, the concealed areas that are never checked, the ongoing robberies including thieves tearing away in probably stolen vehicles putting anyone in the area in danger, the low standard of care, the understaffing which puts all staff at risk, that street people know EXACTLY what areas are not monitored. I have encountered three other opioid collapses and the staff there has only become involved when they are directly told ! They can’t see this out their windows or on their monitors, and since usually only a single person is working, they are forbidden to leave the till.
How bad does it have to be before someone pays attention ?
Black Picket Fence 