A change to the Downtown Lawlessness Reduction Task Force is being explored.
Members of the DLRTF shared a presentation with recommendations to the Governance Standing Policy Committee for council to consider. Included in these recommendations is a guide in principle to create a Downtown Clean and Safe Strategy, have administration work to develop an administrative committee focused on this work and disband the current task force once the administrative committee is implemented. Those sitting on the current task force are also invited to join this new administrative committee once it is formed.
Task Force Chair Hunter Heggie says, he is happy with the response from the committee about these recommendations and says these next steps are a move in the right direction.
“Our Task Force members, as well as the Downtown BRZ and Downtown business owners, are in favour of finding a format that best advances clean and safe strategies for our Downtown,” Heggie says.
Councillor Bellinda Crowson explains if these recommendations and changes are approved by council the task force will become more efficient and effective.
“As Administration can move much quicker and more nimbly, I think we are going to see great things coming from them. This would just give them a much better avenue to move their work forward,” Crowson says.
The task force was created last December as a sub-committee of the Safety and Social SPC. The task force was created to share knowledge and expertise to guide recommendations for solutions to community concerns about lawlessness behaviours in the city. This includes topics such as graffiti abatement, crime prevention through environmental design, and fire safety education. The recommendations shared to the Governance SPC came from these meetings and discussions.
These recommendations will be presented to city council at the November 12th meeting. As well a funding request for a recommended Community Safety Coordinator position was referred to the November 13th Operating Budget Review Deliberations. The request was for a two-year term for the position and if approved it would expedite any future work.
