GROW-WATCHERS PROMISED POLICE PROTECTION

A promise of police protection was made Tuesday to Yarrow residents
who might otherwise feel intimidated about joining a marijuana
grow-watch program in the small close-knit town.

Yarrow resident Jim Brenner said some town folks who attended an
earlier community safety forum in June had felt "threatened" about
even showing up at the meeting.

But nothing ever happened to those folks, he said, and after the
second forum Tuesday he believes there is now a real "appetite" in the
community for a grow-watch program.

Sgt. Bryon Massie, head of the Chilliwack RCMP's street crimes
enforcement unit, told the 35-40 residents at the meeting that the
safety of sources giving information to the police about possible
grow-ops is "paramount."

"We do keep information from sources in the community confidential,"
he said, and court charges will be dropped rather than risk exposing a
source.

"If somebody threatens you ... then we'll take them down," added Staff
Sgt. Gerry Falk. "If you feel intimidated, the yahoos are winning."

Yarrow residents started looking into forming a marijuana grow-watch
program - and other community safety programs - after five grow-ops
located on the town's main street were busted in one day in May.

Police say there have been 10 grow-ops found in the community so far
this year, compared to only two last year.

Brenner said living in Yarrow is like living in "paradise," but
big-city problems like marijuana and crystal meth addiction are making
their way into the small community of about 2,000 located on
Chilliwack's western boundary.

Chilliwack Mayor Clint Hames and city staff at the meeting outlined a
range of measures taken by the city to combat crime, including
volunteer programs like Grow Watch, Block-Watch and Citizens On Patrol.

"The answer to social issues is always the community," Hames said,
although the city also has developed a very close relationship with
the RCMP.

City clerk Rob Carnegie also outlined the city's 2004 anti-marijuana
bylaw that holds landlords accountable for what happens inside rental
suites, and compels them to make regular inspections of their premises.

The Chilliwack bylaw, which focuses on the safety of accommodations,
has been adopted by the Union of B.C. Municipalities as a "baseline"
model for other communities looking to keep marijuana grow-operators
out of their neighbourhoods.

Fines and fees imposed under the Chilliwack bylaw now total
$224,370.

While only about a half dozen Chilliwack neighbourhoods have joined
the city's grow-watch program and only a few grow-ops busted as a
result, Sgt. Massie points out that it's unknown how many more grow
operators thought twice about setting up in one of the neighbourhoods
after seeing the grow-watch signs posted by residents.

Some residents at the Tuesday meeting were also unhappy about three
liquor stores that had suddenly popped up in the town. But police and
city officials blamed the B.C. government for allowing those to open
during a "relaxation" of provincial licencing rules.