The Fir Vale area is a disgrace

Dear Messenger,

I would like to address this letter to our local Councillors and environmentalists. The Fir Vale area is a disgrace. Looking around, there is too much fly tipping and lately clothes left for charity vans. Fir Vale is a very depressed area with socio-economic deprivation, poor housing, bad health and no jobs for young and old alike.

Why should we live in a bad environment? Other areas get money to have nice trees, better lighting and cleaner streets but Fir Vale seems to have been forgotten.

What happened to the playing field above Whiteways School? It was promised to be open to the community but now is fenced off. Also the fields on Earl Marshal Road that have been closed off to Fir Vale School. Currently many young people resort to playing sports on busy roads or in cramped driveways. The only space that has been left in our community is Osgathorpe Park. No doubt this is because it is difficult land to develop. The development of the play area is a positive step but much of the rest of the park is unusable and often soiled by irresponsibly-owned dogs.

The takeaways should be regularly monitored and no more licences be granted until there is a significant improvement in their waste management. Furthermore, if takeaways have been closed for poor hygiene, the owners should not regain their licences.

There has been a drastic increase in rodent numbers. The Council has not addressed this issue yet. Neither have they addressed the issue of potholes on the roads of Fir Vale. There are a large number of potholes which pose a danger to motorists.

The town is full of bright developments, of new layouts and a mass of new apartments, which are designed to provide the Council with rents – posh housing for a new generation of residents with no regard for the existing community. I request that our Councillors get back to more practical ways of making peoples lives better.

With all of these basic problems, is it any wonder the youth of Fir Vale are disillusioned and the prior generations feel let down? We want a cleaner, greener, healthier Fir Vale. Does anyone feel the same?

Regular reader.