‘Avenue’ plan a waste of money

I am a Canterbury resident of many years and I have just finished reading your article regarding the proposed £630k transformation of Canterbury High Street [‘A picturesque avenue upgrade for city centre’, February 20]. I have never responded to any article but having read this one I am dismayed. For me this is a complete waste of taxpayer money - the real problem that needs to be addressed in Canterbury is the anti-social behaviour, the empty shop doorways filled with homeless and beggars approaching visitors.

I have witnessed two assaults in the past year, both on innocent shoppers and both in weekday peak shopping and tourist periods. I am not talking about late night drunken revellers. In both cases there was zero police presence. In one case I left my contact details and heard nothing. In another case I spoke with Whitefriars security and was told to phone 101.

Walking through Canterbury High Street today you will see seven or eight sleeping bags in empty shops doorways and some in shop entrances that are still open. You will see beggars approaching shoppers or shouting at them as they walk past and you will see intimidation from drunks.

I recently returned from a three-day vacation in Amsterdam. After walking the streets and visiting the sites the one thing that surprised me was no homeless and no beggars. I have no idea how they manage it given the city’s reputation but if a city of this size can manage it then what is Canterbury council doing?

Putting up a few trees, new paving and removing market stalls is not what Canterbury needs. I would urge the council to spend the funds on dealing with antisocial behaviour and the homeless. If someone does not start to deal with these issues then the tourists and shoppers will continue to dwindle.

The Ness, Canterbury

Gazette reader Roger Stanger took this beautiful picture of beach huts during a starry night in Tankerton. See more at Roger Stanger Photography on Facebook / rstanger. co.uk premium tax? I know. As they are cutting down their work hours, why don’t they use their new found spare time and start planting some trees?

Knight Avenue, Canterbury