A shooting in broad daylight in Chinatown has left business owners in the area feeling shaken up.
Gunfire erupted through East Hastings Street between Main and Columbia mid-afternoon on Sunday, leaving a 31-year-old with multiple gunshot wounds but who is expected to survive.
Officers chased after the shooter, who was apprehended steps away from the Private & Co clothing store.
“Pender to Main was all blocked off, taped off. You probably saw five or six cops with their guns drawn,” said owner Perry Lam.
Police say it is a miracle no one was hurt.
“The sad part is it’s kind of a semi-re-occurrence. (You just) think, ‘not again.'”
It’s a sentiment shared by many businesses in the area, including the Aiyaohno Cafe. It’s located inside an office building, where businesses are moving out.
“On the list here, it used to be full,” said owner Greg Uyeda. “Now we are seeing 25 to 30 per cent capacity.”
“We know a lot of offices are leaving specifically due to safety concerns and that makes our business less sustainable,” he said.
Vancouver City Council promised a new, improved Chinatown, and recently approved nearly a million dollars in upgrades in January, including security and cleanup programs. The Federal Government has also chipped in nearly $2 million.
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Uyeda says the building has splurged in order to pay for its own security guards.
While he has seen some positive changes in the neighbourhood so far this year, like more cleaning and fewer tents, Uyeda and his wife are still left feeling anxious and say they will need to move if things don’t change.
Evee’s electric scooter shop is stuck in the same predicament.
“We won’t be renewing our lease if crime stays the same. We need to see some changes,” said owner Bradley Spence.
All agree that any change is not happening quickly enough.
This latest incident is believed to have started among a number of tents on East Hastings Street.
Vancouver Police told Global News the suspect, a man in his 30s from Alberta named Jamie George Guimond, has been charged with one count of attempted murder and one count of discharging a firearm with intent.
He will appear in court Feb. 24.
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