'Futile': Saskatoon city council, police grapple with perceptions of crime in Fairhaven
CTV
City councillors heard crime concerns from residents Wednesday after receiving a joint report by Saskatoon police the fire department about community changes following the opening of a major emergency shelter.
City councillors heard crime concerns from residents Wednesday after receiving a joint report by Saskatoon police the fire department about community changes following the opening of a major emergency shelter.
"It's quite alarming to me when I come up here and I have to validate what we've always been saying inside of our emergency wellness center in Fairhaven. It's about helping people," Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand said, addressing councillors.
Crime statistics from December 2021 and January 2024 were released for the Fairhaven and Confederation Suburban Area neighbourhoods following a request from Coun. Darren Hill in February to help the city address concerns from residents.
The Saskatoon Tribal Council's emergency wellness centre came to the area in December 2022, when it moved from 1st Avenue downtown.
While Arcand found the report validating, residents in the area had other opinions.
"If you want a complete picture of what is happening in Fairhaven, you need to understand it's not that crime is normalizing or decreasing — it's because crimes are no longer being reported because it's futile to do so," said Robert Pearce, a Fairhaven resident and vocal critic of the wellness centre.
Pearce, who intends to run in the upcoming municipal election, said two years ago he would have called police for things he's used to seeing on a nearly daily basis. He doesn't report many of the things he sees because it's time consuming and police likely won't do anything to address his concerns.
