VICTORIA TOO TAME FOR ANGELS' AID

The Guardian Angels made a second stop in Victoria, but it was more of
a sightseeing tour than a serious bid to start a chapter of the
crime-watch organization on the Island.

Vancouver chapter leader Dennis Watson and western director Sebastian
Metz spent the Victoria Day long-weekend in town, patrolling the
streets at night to "get a better feel" for the city's criminal
element while playing tourist in the day time.

"I don't think there is a dramatic need for the Guardian Angels in
Victoria because I don't think the violent crime in Victoria is as
high as it is in Vancouver or Surrey," Metz wrote in a blog entry
about the weekend trip.

"At no time did I feel unsafe in Victoria and residents in Victoria
shared the same feeling."

Metz said night club bouncers were "professional and
competent."

The Angels were more struck by the poverty and despair of Victoria's
homeless population than its street crime.

Recounting a few incidents with drug addicts who were "convulsing,
rolling around the sidewalk and street in a very bizarre manner," Metz
reiterated his opposition to the idea of legalized site for consuming
drugs in Victoria.

Robert Randall, chair of the Downtown Residents Association met with
the Angels and said a chapter in Victoria is unlikely without a
groundswell of serious volunteer support.

"There's a lot of business support, but... they have to get a critical
mass, maybe a dozen people or more," Randall said. "There's a gap
between saying I'll do it and actually showing up at two in the morning."

Metz and Watson visited Victoria in early May at the request of a
handful of business and community leaders.