Tourism, housing crisis contributing to increased trash in downtown Charlottetown – Saltwire

CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. As someone who has lived downtown for 20 years, Andrea Battison is familiar with the noise and litter in Charlottetown.

The COVID-19 pandemic gave the neighbourhood a break from tourism and foot traffic, but things have sped back up this year now that most public health restrictions have been dropped.

Now, theres more than just some trash and loud talking.

Its screaming and yelling at 2 a.m. when the bars close. Its people urinating on Battisons driveway and porch.

Recently, Battisons husband caught a man literally with his pants down using their driveway as a toilet.

For Battison, this issue isnt complicated. The city has been encouraging business growth and the foot traffic that comes with it, without also providing services like garbage cans and public washrooms, she said in an Aug. 18 SaltWire interview.

How do you support the people you bring in?

Battison pointed to downtown beautification initiatives that serve tourism, like the lights being installed overheadon downtown streets while leaving behind residents in the area.

You can buy more light stands, and you can do all this paving, but you cant buy garbage cans. You come downtown and look for a garbage can, a public waste receptacle, theres none, she said.

While Battison attributes much of the problem to increased businesses and customers, she also noted there aren't enough garbage cans in general, even without tourism traffic.

I get it, that the city wants to increase business traffic, and I see theres a plus to that for some people, but not everybody, she said.

SaltWire has been reporting on the housing crisis in Charlottetown and P.E.I. and has recently published stories on people living in tents, including in the downtown area.

Battison, however, doesnt think the issues she is seeing are related to homelessness. It seems to be the typical post-bar rowdiness and messiness that comes in part from having nowhere to place garbage, such as pizza boxes, she said.

Along with more garbage cans and possibly public washrooms, Battison suggested more security could help.

She doesnt think this needs to be police, though. Just some kind of official security presence to act as a deterrent, she said.

Tessa Rogers, a street outreach worker with PEERS Alliance, believes the increased garbage around Charlottetown is connected to the housing crisis and the rise of people sleeping rough.

In her work, Rogers has been to encampments in the woods and met numerous Islanders sleeping in tents.

What she hasnt seen are basic civic services, like garbage cans, public washrooms or even places to fill water, she said in an Aug. 17 SaltWire interview.

People are trying to source out areas where theyre not going to be bothered by the police or bothered by the general community, so theyre going in more private areas that dont have resources surrounding them.

While Rogers agrees with the need for more garbage services, she doesnt think more police will help the situation.

Theyre definitely issues, like we dont want to have litter all over town. But thats as simple as talking to people and saying, OK, this is the area youre camping. Were going to bring in a big garbage can for you folks to use, and were going to come this day every week or every couple days to empty it.

Instead of security, Rogers called for providing the services people have been asking for.

When Battison first contacted SaltWire, she included an email chain that also involved several city councillors and Brad MacConnell, the chief of Charlottetown Police Services.

Mitch Tweel, councillor for Ward 4, replied to the email, adding the citys CAO and public works manager to the chain, and saying he was sorry the issue was happening in the citys historic district.

Alanna Jankov, councillor for ward one much of the downtown area also responded to Battison's initial letter outlining the issue, acknowledging it is a problem and noting CPS is working on a plan for more security.

This will likely be private security, rather than police, Jankov said in a follow-up email to SaltWire.

SaltWire emailed and called MacConnell to ask about the complaints and whether more security will be coming and what it might look like, but MacConnell directed SaltWire to speak with Todd Sutcliffe, CPSs bylaw officer.

Sutcliffe did not respond by deadline to an Aug. 18 interview request.

On Aug. 18, SaltWire also called Scott Adams, manager of Charlottetown Public Works, to ask about plans for more garbage services downtown.

Adams hadnt personally heard complaints about the issue and didnt know of any city plan for more garbage services, but would check with his assistant manager, he said.

SaltWire did not receive any further response by deadline.

Logan MacLean is a diversity reporter with the SaltWire Network in Prince Edward Island. He can be reached by email at [emailprotected] and followed on Twitter @loganmaclean94.

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Tourism, housing crisis contributing to increased trash in downtown Charlottetown - Saltwire