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Clearing the alleys of brush and cardboard and adding extra lighting were some suggestions city officials offered downtown residents Saturday following a recent rash of house fires in the city’s core.
Ward 3 councillor Rino Bortolin organized the walk and talk session with residents which started at the corner of Church Street and Vera Place, just steps from a burnt out duplex on Church.
Barry Horrobin, the director of planning for Windsor Police Service, also offered advice to the 35 people who attended.
The group hadn’t gone very far when Horrobin stopped to point out several cardboard boxes lying in the alley behind a home on Church and how that’s an open invitation to an arsonist.
He pointed out the dried, overgrown brush in an adjacent alley between Karl Place and Vera Place. To cheers from the crowd, that’s where Bortolin announced the city is seeking to close the east-west alleyway.
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“It’s about time,” yelled out one resident.
Windsor Police are investigating at least five suspicious fires in the city’s core recently.
“We care about our neighbourhood,” said Emily Coupland who lives with her family on Bruce Avenue. “It’s good to get to know things we can do to protect our neighbours and our neighbourhood.”
Coupland walks the alleys with her four children and two dogs daily.
“They need to be safe,” she said.
In addition to clearing yards and alleys of anything flammable, Horrobin recommended keeping back porch lights on if they face an alley and adding address numbers to the back of homes on an alley as an aid to first responders.
“There’s a lot of simple, small things you can do at home to help protect your property,” he said.
Horrobin said it’s difficult to get a conviction for arson but added it’s “a very serious crime because of its high social and financial impact.”
When asked about the police investigation, Bortolin said “they do have some leads and they’re working on some things,” but provided no other details.
Several residents used the gathering to ask what was being done about the problems related to homelessness.
“You do live in an area with a large, mobile street population,” Horrobin said.
mcaton@postmedia.com
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