Concerns over an increase in crime was one of the topics of discussion at a recent Saskatoon Board of Police Commissioners meeting. Two business and community representatives spoke about their challenges.
The Executive Director of the Riversdale Business Improvement District, Randy Pshebylo talked about the 1500 block of 20th Street West, where there is an encampment in front of the safe injection site. He notes there isn’t room for people to walk on the sidewalk in that area because of all the people and the shopping carts. Pshebylo suggests police could disperse the encampment citing bylaw infractions, because sidewalks are supposed to have clear access, which, he states, is something businesses have been cited for.
He says, “At what point do we say, that’s enough? Are three shopping carts too many? Eleven? At some point we just need to do our jobs.”
Pshebylo adds that the 300 block of Avenue C South where the Salvation Army shelter is, has also seen an increase in people on the street. He would also like the former Downtown and Riversdale Community Safety Plan brought back. It was a two-year plan that ended last summer.
Acting Chief Dave Haye told the Board that there are the same number of officers assigned to Riversdale as there was before, and they have increased the number of Alternate Response Officers, but he understands that the past six months has seen an increased calls for service.
The Executive Director of the NSBA told the Board that a survey of the organization’s members indicates 80 per cent have been impacted by rising crime, especially in the downtown and north end areas. They are deeply concerned about the recent increase in vandalism and break-ins and the effects on their businesses. Moen would like to see more police patrols in the downtown and north end, more encouragement for businesses to report crimes, because it can be cumbersome and there is a perceived lack of outcome. The NSBA would also like a quicker way to report crimes over $5,000, because lineups at police headquarters can take a large chunk of time, and would like to see police have a district liaison for the business community. Moen also suggested a property damage relief program to compensate businesses which have been vandalized He points to British Columbia’s Small Business Rebate Program and the City of Edmonton’s Window Repair Program.
Commissioner Brent Penner noted that the city has grown significantly in recent years. “The way our city is growing, I think it’s important that we are at least cognizant of, are the number of officers growing at a pace that is sufficient to keep up with the things that are occurring in our community. And as we grow out further and further, it takes longer for officers to respond from one call to another.” Moen would like to see more police funding in the city’s budget to get more officers on the streets.
