Dear Editor:
I need to say how discouraged I was on my weekly commute in from Coquitlam to visit my father at Evergreen House in Lions Gate Hospital to find the facility ringed by shiny new parking meters.It is not an easy thing, to visit your father in such a place as Evergreen. One of the positives has been how easy it was to park close to the building, and at no extra cost. With three children to help through post-secondary education, I budget for the mileage I put on my car each weekend coming to North Vancouver.
I carry a big heavy bag full of all the things my dad and I might need to make our visit successful. As dementia takes its slow, sad course with my dad, I can never tell what he might be up for, so we need all the contents of my "dad bag." On good days I can manoeuvre his wheelchair along the sidewalk and transfer him into my car at his pace, without the stress of trying to accomplish this feat in the 10 minutes allowed in the official pickup/ drop-off parking spots.
What a slap in the face to find that the City of North Vancouver has decided to make it that much harder for me to visit my lovely dad. The money those meters reap will be at the expense of caring people trying to spend as much time as humanly possible with loved ones who are living or dying with dignity at both Evergreen and the hospice. Shame on you for such a mean-spirited and insensitive act. I challenge you to surprise me by owning your error and reversing it. Remove and recycle those meters and top the posts with flower planters instead.
Laurel Bryson
Coquitlam
