In an effort to make Chinatown a safer neighbourhood, business owners and volunteers in the area will try to deal with two major problems on Somerset Street next month: garbage and graffiti.
Empty bottles, pizza boxes, candy wrappers and cigarette butts can be seen along the sidewalks, sometimes even on residents’ lawns, while graffiti signs cover the walls of many businesses and restaurants.
Much of the problem is due to cultural and linguistic differences, says Gordon Walker, vice-chair of the Somerset Street Chinatown Business Improvement Area.
"A lot of newcomers do not have an understanding of what the expectation is to keep the neighbourhood clean," he says. "The street has seen a gradual decline over the last 10 to 15 years. The atmosphere, the cleanliness, the pride in the community just isn’t there."
Another problem, Walker says, is that people working downtown pass through Chinatown and litter, thinking the street is not their responsibility.
As part of the City of Ottawa’s Cleaning the Capital campaign, the Somerset BIA is organizing a spring-cleaning event for the area in the morning of May 9. The main goals are to make Chinatown more welcoming for customers and tourists, and to develop a sense of community among residents, Walker said.
A similar event was organized last year, mainly with volunteers from Kelly Funeral Homes and Chapels on Somerset, of which Walker is managing director.
"Not one person gave us a hand. Not one," Walker says. "It was difficult to encourage the volunteers to continue."
This year, the BIA is more active and better organized, he says. The Scotiabank branch located at Somerset and Bronson is also supporting the event. Teams of volunteers will clean the streets and the sidewalks, right up to people’s houses or businesses.
The BIA has also hired outside help to begin removing some of the graffiti.
This problem has been getting worse in the last few years, says Kate Thai, co-manager of a houseware store on Somerset. Over the last year, the BIA removed two graffiti signs from her building, she says.
"There are a lot of kids out there who have nothing better to do," Thai says. "All the graffiti leaves a bad impression of us. We need to do this to give people an idea this is a safe area."
But cleaning the graffiti is not a permanent solution, says the manager of the grocery store Kowloon Market, who didn’t want to be named.
"It costs a lot of money to clean it up," he says. "It will look good for a month, but next month it will look the same as before. Local authorities should find the people who did it. We are the victims."
Although he agrees with the spring-cleaning event, he says the graffiti problem should also be tackled through a co-operation between residents and the police.
His thoughts are echoed by Dennis Luc, owner of Mekong restaurant also on Somerset, who says residents and business owners cannot control the spread of graffiti
"All you can do is to yell at them and they run away," he said.
But removing the graffiti and cleaning the street is necessary in order for people to feel safe when they come to Chinatown, he says. "It’s about getting the word out there and improving the image. It’s good for everybody."
Luc added that he hopes the event on May 9 will motivate residents to continue cleaning and be more aware of their neighbourhood.
Walker says a clean and safe street would also be good for businesses. "Tourists, customers will come here to shop or browse or wonder around if they feel it’s clean and safe."