Uphill battle to keep clean says Centre Square mall
Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Feb 02/01) - Cigarette butts and empty pop cans, stains from unknown sources and the odd glove create the litter canvas covering the 50th St. entrance to Centre Square Mall.
And Kurt Lehniger is tired of it, mall management should clean things up, he says.
But according to mall management, cleaning the entrances to the mall is akin to building sand castles between waves.
"For the last five weeks it's been dirty," said Lehniger.
"They don't take care of the mall," he said.
Lehniger worries about tourists and the impression it leaves.
"If you have to, always wear surgical gloves before you touch anything. You might have problems looking through the glass doors, because they are covered with spit and vomit."
"Do as the Japanese tourists do: wear a face mask."
Jennifer Marchant, general manager of the Centre Square mall said she's about all out of moves.
"It's a constant battle during the day," said Marchant.
"We've got problems with street people and drunks," said Marchant, "we have problems with encouraging (the cleaners) to do a better job."
"We get tremendous problems from (a local bar), broken glass, extra activity and generally intoxicated people," she said.
She also said the weather wreaks havoc on the cleaner's ability to keep things shiny.
"When there are variations in temperatures it gets slushy and splashes on the windows," said Marchant.
"And when you put salt down it creates new compounds," she said.
She also said there are hundreds of people tramping through the mall every day.
For Lehniger the end result is still the same. He wants management to come up with a way to get the dirt under control.
Marchant said the mall renews its cleaning contracts every few years.
Mall management is going for a new tender at the end of February. Until then Marchant said they're doing the best they can.
"It's a work in progress," she said.
