WATCH ABOVE: The mayor of Spruce Grove says he’s been fighting with the Home Depot for years, asking them to clean up the garbage near their store. Kent Morrison has the latest.
EDMONTON — Every year around this time, Spruce Grove Mayor Stuart Houston gets on the phone to the local Home Depot. Every spring, garbage and debris from the store and its yard cover the city property nearby.
This year, Houston had enough.
“I’m absolutely disgusted.”
Houston has been mayor for seven years. He told Global News he’s spent hours on the phone and in the store trying to get the area cleaned up.
“It’s been an ongoing battle for me with Home Depot and I’ve had it.
“This is no longer acceptable in the City of Spruce Grove. It’s no longer an acceptable business practice.”
The mayor said plastic, cardboard and other debris can be seen year-round across the land next to the store, but it’s even more noticeable in the spring.
“We’ve spent millions of dollars on community beautification in the last five years…When I have to drive by this, it’s very upsetting.”
He said the issue isn’t just an aesthetic one – it’s also an environmental concern. Some of the garbage ends up in the creek, which Houston says feeds Big Lake Basin and Sturgeon River in St. Albert.
“We need Home Depot to be a good corporate citizen and look at their business practice and not have this environmental disaster.”
Shortly after the Global News crew arrived at the location, staff started cleaning up.
But Houston is hoping for a more permanent solution. The mayor and council are looking the ‘Untidy and Unsightly Bylaw’ and sent it back to administration to “put some teeth into it.” Houston says it currently doesn’t go far enough.
No one at the Spruce Grove Home Depot agreed to be interviewed by Global News.
A spokesperson for the company issued the following statement:
“We are looking to rectify this situation immediately and to ensure that all loose debris from the neighbourhood will be cleaned up as soon as possible,” said Emily DiCarlo, a public relations specialist with Home Depot Canada.
“As a short-term solution, we will also review our waste disposal process to ensure that any garbage from the store is properly dealt with and will increase the number of our exterior waste sweeps. In the longer-term, we plan to work with the City and the other surrounding retailers to ensure an effective solution is put in place.
“We will continue to strive to be a great community neighbour,” said DiCarlo.
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