P-Patch residents say church grounds are party hangout

25 residents of Pinemore Blvd. and Princeton Drive have asked City Hall to help clean up what they claim are dangerous and disgraceful conditions on the grounds of St. Gerard Majella Church.

The P-Patch neighbours complain that the church grounds at 211 Pentagon Blvd. have become a party hangout for young people, with associated noise, traffic and vandalism problems.

"The exit to Pinemore Blvd. is dangerous with many near crashes," the residents say in a statement submitted with a petition to Ward 3 Councillors Derik Brandt and Pat Mick.

"One neighbour has had a car up on his lawn. It's dangerous for little children," the statement says.

The church is undergoing a pastoral change and no one was available to comment to SooToday News today on the charges.

However, parishioners believe some of the allegations are trivial and others relate to isolated incidents.

Resident complaints

The 25 residents who signed the petition say that:

- trash, including broken bottles and even an engine, is a problem in the parking lot and spreads to neighbouring properties

- large numbers of young people hang out on the church grounds, making noise at all hours and setting fires

- the St. Gerard Majella grounds have turned into a dog run, with deposits being made on neighbours' lawns

- dust from the parking lot is so severe that neighbours' driveways are covered in dust and they can't leave their windows open

- snow plows have broken the curbs on Pinemore Blvd.

- cars perform burnouts and power turns in the parking lot

- the church's lawn is overgrown with weeds, is cut only when people complain, and is a "disgrace"

What the neighbours want

Solutions proposed by the complaining neighbours include paving the parking lot, selling it to allow another home in the neighbourhood, gating the property with entrance allowed only for church functions, or closing the the Pinemore entrance permanently.

What the City has done

City officials have asked police to address traffic, rowdiness and vandalism complaints at the property.

Debris and dog droppings have been cleaned up and the site has been graded.

As for the other complaints, the City says the solutions must be implemented by the property owners and municipal officials are powerless to force them.

"Since the church was constructed prior to 1968 they are not required to pave the parking lot," says Maurice Kukoraitis, the City's director of engineering design and buildings.

"Consequently dust will be an ongoing problem, however the Church should be carrying out dust control on an annual basis," Kukoraitis says.

"The building division can be contacted when the situation becomes intolerable. We will then request that the owners undertake some dust control measure."

Tall grass complaints will be dealt with

The City has no bylaw authority to address weed-control issues, but Kukoraitis says any complaints about long grass at the property will be acted on "expeditiously."

He says speed bumps would help control the parking lot situation, but, similarly, the City is unable to force the issue.

As for the complaints about damaged curbs, Kukoraitis says there are thousands of cases of similar damage around the City, with hundreds more added each plowing season.

The City doesn't repair such damage and isn't in a position to insist the church do it, he said.

A copy of Kukoraitis' report will be forwarded to the church with a request for its co-operation in resolving the complaints.

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