It’s been a decade since Edmonton really dove into revitalizing Alberta Avenue and progress has undoubtedly been made, but residents are hopeful it doesn’t stop now – especially when it comes to street prostitution.
Clayton Smith lives just off 118 Avenue and said he bought his house three years ago.
“I’ve always kind of liked the area. We have mature trees, none of the houses look the same. It’s close to the downtown and that’s kind of why I bought here.”
But he feels prostitution is giving the area a black eye. Smith said he sees women working outside his front window between four and six times a week. He took to Facebook to share his concerns, and said other nearby residents agreed with him.
“Alongside the prostitution there’s a lot of other things that go on. You have drug dealing, you have public intoxication and other things like that.”
Smith has lost count of how many times he’s called 311 or the police non-emergency line to report a john, and he’s not alone.
“What I hear from the neighbours is that we call so many times and nothing has happened. Things just continue to kind of be this way and we’re all just getting frustrated,” he said.
Staff Sgt. Dale Johnson with the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) Human Trafficking and Exploitation Unit said he understands the concerns.
“We’re cognizant of the ongoing issues that are brought by some of the sex trade workers that continue to work along that street and the johns that are trolling and coming to attempt to purchase sex,” he said.
“I’m certainly sympathetic. I understand people do not want to see that activity in their neighbourhood and they have a belief that it brings with it other undesirable activity.”
Selling sex isn’t illegal, only buying it is, so police are focusing their efforts on catching the johns.
“We encourage them to call more about the johns’ activity and the specifics about the john. We have a report-a-john program still. It is mostly online and it’s available through our EPS website.”
He said getting a licence plate number and vehicle make and model is especially helpful. Johnson said officers do follow up with registered owners.
“We just recently conducted a sting operation along 95 Street and 118 Avenue corridor where we were successful in arresting 14 consumers.”
In 2017, police arrested 295 johns.
“Edmonton used to have street-level activity spread around different avenues and different streets. It’s largely isolated itself to 95 Street and 118 Avenue corridors now,” Johnson said.
The area’s councillor, Tony Caterina, said there’s still work to do along Alberta Avenue.
“I imagine it’s going to take another number of years to reduce the effect it’s having now. But if you’d been on the Avenue five years ago, 10 years ago, you’d consider this a success.”
Caterina said there’s tangible proof the neighbourhood is improving; in 2016 Alberta Avenue had the most development permits of any area.
He’s hopeful residents will keep reporting any illegal activity they see to his office, 311 and the police.
“I know sometimes it gets onerous. You’ve done it once, twice, 10 times. The feeling to actually keep reporting kind of diminishes,” Caterina said.
Smith said he’ll keep calling and he’s hopeful his tips will attract more of a police presence and long-term solution in the future.
“Recently, they parked a couple cruisers and a van across the way and it was the quietest evening we’ve had in a long time,” Smith said.
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