JARA sets targets for the coming year
The Jubilee and Area Residents Association (JARA) will be advocating several issues on behalf of their community in the coming months. The association, which covers the streets Jubilee, Riverview and Oscar-Guertin, has concerns both within their neighbourhood and in the larger area of Aylmer that they would like to see the City address.
One idea they are enthusiastic about is the prospect of improving public transportation in Aylmer. Particularly, they would like to investigate the possibility of having a streetcar along rue Principale.
JARA President Yvan Gervais said that the association feels that Aylmer’s main street deserves special attention. “Rue Principale is lively and green and there is so much we can do,” Gervais said. “Its our own little strip mall,” JARA Vice-President Claude Naubert said.
Naubert said that JARA has spoken with the City about replacing the garbage cans along rue Principale, which were removed in November from Wilfred-Lavigne all the way to the marina.
There are issues in JARA’s backyard that they are going to bring to the City’s attention as well including the proposed widening of rue Jubilee.
JARA will also be lobbying to give Riverview a facelift, which Gervais says needs to be resurfaced. The ability to tackle these issues collectively is the real advantage of community associations like JARA, Gervais believes.
“We are here to improve the community spirit and quality of life,” Gervais said. “I wanted to live in a place where people talk to each other,” he continued. “In an association, you can make a difference on the municipal level more easily,” Naubert added. “It’s a great expression of democracy.”
There are 90 homes that are a part of JARA and 45 individuals registered so far this year. Gervais said that a community association is a great way to get involved in your neighbourhood. “You have to be involved if you want things to happen,” he said.
What Gervais would like to see, is a better system of communication between the City and community associations.
