Community Safety Town Hall packed with hundreds of citizens looking for answers

“Quite frankly, we probably should have done this earlier. (…) It’s many, many concerns. But in a broader approach, for residents of Prince George, they don’t always feel safe being downtown, and that is a real issue that I can say collectively, together, we have to work on,” said City Councillor Ron Polillo.

A huge topic of discussion among many community members was the drug crisis and Mocassin Flats. On the drug crisis, Prince George RCMP Superintendent Shaun Wright says the province’s decision to reverse its decision to decriminalize open drug use will be a tremendous help in making our streets safer.

“It gives us the power to address a lot of the complaints of people hanging around using drugs, so it’s definitely a positive step forward for us,” Wright said.

“They (drug users) don’t need the free drug use and the free housing, they need some serious help medically. They need to be forced into an institution. You can’t you can’t tell me that this is helping them, wandering around,” Tomei said. She explained her daughter is struggling with addiction so she is aware of the impacts this has on families, and the challenges surrounding addiction.

Ronald Pelletier was one of many community members in attendance, and he is both an outreach worker and a formerly homeless man who struggled with addiction. Having been on both sides of the situation, he stresses the importance of “bridging the gap.”

“I think that people need to be held accountable. We need to make sure that we hear all voices, but we also have to try and get involved with other communities, bring them in to help bridge that gap and try to get some people back home. The majority of the homeless people are Indigenous people and if we can get them somehow back with their communities or through supports, I think we can all come together and do that,” Pelletier said.

On the idea of bridging the gap, Pelletier says it’s important to understand the people you’re trying to help. Even a well-intentioned municipality or decision maker may not be able to get far if it doesn’t understand how to help somebody struggling with addiction.

“Provincial governments, federal governments, they all have policies. The people on the streets, they don’t have policies, they have street policies. So you need somebody that can kind of mediate between that, and actually not advocate, but be a person that’s been there,” he said. Pelletier added as a person who has been on the streets, he would like to be in a role where he can serve as a mediator.

Brad Gustafson, a community advocate and co-leader of the Tiny Home project in Mocassin Flats, explains the fire outbreaks have been difficult on the Mocassin Flats population too. Some fires are caused by criminal activity, so Gustafson says most of the population in Mocassin Flats is also eagerly awaiting a solution to make our streets safe.

“The personal safety issue does affect the people down there, but everyone who lives there will say it’s always the few bad apples that make it bad for everyone else. 90% of the people down there are just wonderful people, they just want to get to know you. They take ownership of their community, they clean up, they’re responsible,” he said.

While community members of all backgrounds were in attendance, a common theme was shared among everyone: the belief that to make real, lasting change, it will take all of us.

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by Tommy Osborne

Community Safety Town Hall packed with hundreds of citizens looking for answers

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