A two-year pilot project to address crime and social disorder in Chinatown will be coming to an end. This comes as both the community and the city try to keep the area’s revitalization efforts moving.
The Healthy Streets Operation Centre was launched in 2022 as a collaborative project between Edmonton police, social workers, and other front-line staff.
City staff was collecting information regarding crime-related incidents in the neighbourhood. The creation of the centre is one of several actions the city promised to address a spike in violent crime downtown, in nearby Chinatown, and on the transit system.
But the pilot will be wrapping up in December.
Sandy Pon, chair of the Chinatown Transformative Collaborative, says she knew the pilot was temporary, but hoped it would have continued.
“The idea of the centre is to build more trust and confidence with the neighbourhood in dealing with the social disorder. Having more hands-on services in the area to deal with the crisis that we have,” Pon said.
She believes the past two years have made a difference and strengthened the relationship between community members and the service workers.
Pon adds that while data may show an increase of incidents, it doesn’t tell the full picture.
“More reporting doesn’t mean there’s more things happening. It’s been there. But it is getting the community members to step up,” Pon said.
“It’s all up to the individual’s interpretation. When there’s an uptick of reports, that doesn’t mean there’s more crime. It proved to us there is more reporting by members in the community. That shows us there was trust and confidence of coming forward.”
Some community members say the Healthy Streets Operation Centre not only improved safety in the area, but they’ve also started to see an increase in visitors returning to the neighbourhood.
Despite that, businesses say there’s still more work to be done and it’s a matter of keeping the momentum going.
Phong Luu is the owner of Kim Fat Market Ltd. He grew up in Chinatown and has noticed the fluctuation from the hustle and bustle to empty streets.
He’s dealt with vandalism and several break-ins at his store within the past few years. He applauds the work of the Healthy Streets Operation Centre.
“It made a difference. I mean obviously when you have peace officers and EPS and firefighters around here, it deters crime. It helps everyone at ease in this community,” Luu explained. “With EPS members coming down, it’s a sense of security. It’s like a big brother looking after you.”
“People always say that EPS is not needed. Policing is not needed. That’s totally untrue. The EPS members that are here are actually very good. They talk to the homeless people. They fist pump. They come to our businesses and check up on us,” he added.
Luu says he’s had to reduce his operating hours, from closing at 7 p.m. to 5 p.m., to ensure his family and staff are safe.
With the Healthy Streets Operation Centre in place, he noticed an interconnectedness with several organizations coming together to address problems they encounter as business owners.
“Obviously the houselessness need isn’t there. At the end of the day, this is our brothers and sisters too and we feel for them. The thing is, as a business community, we can’t have this influx of activities of vandalism, break and enters. It’s just not good for business, it’s not good for anyone.
“We’re all coming together to resolve an issue. but the issue is bigger than what we can handle,” Luu said.
Restaurant owner Hoay Tang believes there needs to be more emphasis on supporting Edmonton’s homeless community.
He believes the disorder has got out of hand, and his neighbourhood is no longer safe.
Tang says his restaurant used to be packed when he first opened his doors in 2010. He’s lost 70 per cent of his customers.
The Edmonton Police Service says the area will continue to be supported by the service and it will keep funding its share of the Healthy Streets Operations.
“Community Safety Teams, the EPS component of HSOC that combines police officers with AHS paramedics, will continue their dedicated work in this geographical area for the foreseeable future and be funded internally by EPS,” Edmonton police spokesperson Cheryl Voordenhout said in a statement.
“HSOC showed the effectiveness of a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach in addressing community safety and wellness concerns, so this approach will continue in the future where there are issues identified by citizens or statistical data. Efficiencies identified during HSOC are also helping EPS develop strategies to address similar issues throughout the city,” Voordenhout added.
In Wednesday’s executive city council meeting, councilors were shown a presentation regarding the initiatives and its progress in Chinatown.
Councillors also approved a motion to transfer more than $400,000 from the Downtown Vibrancy Fund to the Chinatown Vibrancy Fund, as the city flushes out its long-term strategy.
“I have stressed from day one that Chinatown has been neglected for decades and that we need to reinvest back into the community which we are doing,” Mayor Amarjeet Sohi explained Wednesday during an interview between council meetings.
Luu thanks his loyal customers for keeping his business running. With the safety improvements he’s seen in the last two years, he hopes more Edmontonians will return to Chinatown.
“Just come on down and the more people that come down and support our community, in the long run, it’s going to be vibrant,” he said.