I have hesitated to write this letter because I was told it would probably be a waste of time; however, since reading an article in a morning paper, I have decided to go ahead and waste your time.
First, I owe an apology to all those folks who have to rely on wheelchairs and motorized chairs to get around. I was only thinking of myself when I put off writing.
It is my understanding that the City of Centralia is planning on annexing some more property from its Urban Growth Area. Before they do that, they should take care of the property they are already responsible for, namely the sidewalks.
The specific areas I am addressing are the sidewalks in front of Providence Centralia Hospital that the city utilities dug up and replaced with gravel, the sidewalk at the entrance to the police training area that again the city utilities dug up and replaced the handicap ramp with gravel, the area along the north side of Cooks Hill Road that vehicles have made the pavement impossible for a wheelchair to navigate.
I had never considered it, but these areas are in direct violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and put the city in danger of a potentially expensive lawsuit. This is not to mention those areas that the city has allowed to become so overgrown with weeds and trees (just east of the Mellen Street bridge over the Chehalis River) that make it virtually impossible for any type of wheelchair to pass. I also do believe that the sidewalk on that bridge is too narrow for a wheelchair, and the roadway is way too narrow for vehicles and wheelchairs to safely share.
Again I apologize to those folks confined to wheelchairs.
James Howe
Centralia
