GROWING FEARS IN THE INNER-CITY

Until Root Causes Are Dealt With, Symptoms Will Override Solutions

If perception is reality, then downtown is unsafe. The increasing
number of vagrants, drug users and street gangs operating in the core
has become so visible, it can no longer be ignored. Add to that a
recent move by some inner-city businesses to increase security for
their staff and customers, and one must ask what is going on down there?

Rest assured, Calgary is still a safe city. According to police,
crime in the last year has actually fallen in the downtown core,
including the notoriously rough Beltline area. That's in keeping with
a general downward trend over the last several years.

Cold-hearted stats, though, don't erase the fact there are still
serious issues which must be addressed. But until the root causes of
the broad societal problems underlying much of the anxiety and fear
are dealt with, the city will continue to spend money policing
symptoms instead of searching out a more permanent solution involving
the entire community.

Zero tolerance needs to be applied to serious criminals -- gang
members and others involved in the drug trade or convicted of violent
crimes. They deserve to be put behind bars.

At the same time, Calgary must not simply turn a blind eye to the
increasing poverty dividing the city into the rich and the poor. We
can't expect that a police presence will make the homeless and other
people down on their luck magically disappear. At best, it will just
push those most vulnerable, who themselves are preyed upon, into less
visible neighbourhoods.

"I can't overemphasize enough that homelessness isn't a crime.
Homeless individuals are victimized in our downtown core," District
One Insp. Bob Ritchie told the Herald. Ritchie is responsible for
downtown policing, including the Special Duties team introduced last
year as part of the city's Clean to the Core program.

He believes the biggest contributors to the deteriorating atmosphere
are the drug trade, and the booming economy -- which feeds the drug
trade and has created a housing crisis.

There is no denying it has been a particularly violent summer, with
numerous stabbings, shootings and street fights. There were eight
suspicious deaths in nine days, a gang shootout and a videotaped
savage beating of a man outside a homeless shelter.

Businesses are justifiably concerned. By taking smart precautions,
they're contributing to the solution, and watching out for the safety
of others.

Sport Swap on 11 Avenue in the Beltline has adopted a buddy system
for its employees, asking them to leave in pairs at the end of their
shifts. Other companies such as BP Canada Energy Co. issued a memo to
employees warning them of where and when it's safe to walk downtown.

Certainly, a more visible presence of uniformed police officers will
deter some of the drug activity plaguing downtown. That can be
achieved by redeploying resources or simply getting staffing levels
up to full capacity. District One, for example, is short 14 of its
175 complement of officers.

Still, police cannot be expected to bear the responsibility alone,
nor can they solve deeper issues such as addictions, mental health
and poverty. Council would be wise to examine the larger picture when
debating Mayor Dave Bronconnier's motion for more police officers
downtown, expected to be brought forward on Monday.

The $5 million the mayor wants approved to hire 10 more police
officers and 25 bylaw enforcers might be more effective if spent on
permanent solutions to end homelessness. That goal is growing closer
with the development of a 10-year-plan soon to be released by the
Calgary Committee to End Homelessness.