by Alex MacWilliam
In March I attended the Calgary Policing Summit, a full day conference hosted by the Calgary Police Commission. It was an opportunity for community representatives and various stakeholders to listen and provide insights and perspectives on the plans and priorities of the Calgary Police Service (CPS). The theme of this year’s Summit was “Safe Public Spaces” and the program included:
• A presentation on how CPS and the City of Calgary are working together to address crime and disorder in public spaces.
• A panel discussion on how the police and the community can work together to improve safety in public spaces.
• A panel discussion on how the community as a whole can better help people in crisis to reduce and prevent crime and disorder.
• A Q&A session with Chief Constable Mark Neufeld.
• Booths hosted by various CPS teams and other agencies such as Alpha House and the Distress Centre involved in improving community safety.
There were 360 invited representatives in attendance, and I was seated at a table with representatives of a number of other communities such as Parkdale and University Heights. It was interesting to hear different perspectives and experiences from community association leaders in other parts of the City.
The presentations and panel discussions were very informative, with CPS representatives from the Joint Management Team and Community Response Engagement Teams providing statistics and insight into the approaches they are taking, in conjunction with other agencies, to deal with disorder and criminal activity. The JMT was set up in 2023, meets weekly and includes representation from 30 entities. A data analyst from CPS provided statistics showing that property crime and violent crime levels in the City are decreasing, as is the level of disorder. It was noted that these numbers are based on what is reported, emphasizing the need for citizens to call in incidents when they see them. It was also noted that Downtown is the only district in the city where crime and disorder levels are not decreasing.
A program to deal with “High System Users” was launched in 2024 and has 50 CPS officers assigned to do. Statistics showed that 37 individuals were responsible for almost 2,000 incidents reported to police. The HSU program now covers 50 persons identified by their frequency of involvement in bylaw violations and criminal events and by information provided by members of the public (again showing the importance of reporting). The HSU program works with Alberta Health Services, City of Calgary Bylaws, Calgary Transit, and various mental health agencies.
The panel discussion addressing “The Future of Safe Public Spaces” included a representative from the Crown Prosecutor’s office and the head of the new Calgary Community Court. The latter entity started in mid-2024 and is an innovative approach to divert vulnerable individuals charged with bylaw offences from the criminal justice system and connect them with rehabilitation and stabilization programs as an alternative to fines or other punitive sanctions. This panel also included Alberta Minister of Mental Health and Addiction, Dan Williams, who spoke about the province’s new Alberta Recovery Model, which is intended to address individuals who are a danger to themselves or others due to addiction or substance use.
This various panel members identified the biggest factors impacting the safety of public spaces over the next five years as:
• Increased homelessness.
• Focusing on healing in indigenous populations.
• “Unplugging” the blockage preventing adequate federal government funding from getting to where it is most needed.
• Dangerous drug supply (one of the panellists said we need to “envision a world where it is easier to get help than it is to get high”).
The City released its Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan last May. It is a plan for implementing 28 recommendations made by the Downtown Safety Leadership Table. The representative of the City who spoke on the Plan said its focus will be on the wellbeing of people, creating “great public spaces” and providing timely responses to safety concerns. In response to a question from the floor, we were told that community associations will be consulted and given opportunities to provide input to the Plan. More information is available on the City’s Community Safety webpage.
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