Dawn Matte grew up in a tough neighbourhood close to the city’s downtown core within a few blocks of where she now manages a health food store and never has she felt as unsafe about the surroundings close to her business as she does now.
She took over as manager of Ave Maria on 20th Avenue in the Gateway community three years ago and has seen a steady increase in the number of frightening encounters she and her staff have had with unsavoury characters who frequent the strip mall and adjacent convenience store.
Like other downtown businesses they are tired of being forced to conduct regular sweeps of the storefront area to clean up drug needles, human feces and other garbage while also dealing with panhandlers and street people threatening violence while carrying concealed weapons.
Matte was among 35 business owners, police, health and social workers, and individuals who made presentations at a special city council meeting Monday night to highlight their concerns and offer possible solutions to the city’s growing problems of crime, poverty, affordable housing shortages, mental health issues and drug and alcohol addictions.
“I grew up on the 2400 block of Quince Street 25 years ago, I know what the city used to be like and I remember being a terrified girl walking up and down that street,” Matte said. “I would give anything to go back to those days. When I was a 10-year-old girl I could walk up to 7/11 and not have to worry about watching my back. Today I work at Ave Maria and I won’t cross the street to go to 7/11.
“I am afraid for my employees. I now have to look out for my employees’ mental health. (They are) terrified to go into work because they’ve witnessed a knife fight in front of the store, or myself and my daughter being threatened by a man who had an axe in his backpack. It’s scary.”
The city has reached out to social agencies, housing and health authorities, and the RCMP as partners to find solutions. But council failed to extend the same invitation to business owners and their frustrations reached a boiling point, prompting Monday’s meeting.
In agreement with several of the speakers, Matte would like to see more police and bylaw enforcement and a crackdown on criminal activity that results in the perpetrators getting the support they need, rather than just throwing them in jail.
“This isn’t a downtown problem, this is a city-wide problem,” she said.
“There needs to be more mental health programs, there needs to be more housing to help them and there needs to be more actual daily compassion. When there is an increased (police) presence the crime rates go down.
“We can also hold our agencies accountable as well, even with Northern Health and the needle exchange. To be honest, it’s not an exchange. There should be more of an incentive bring it back. I see needles all the time and I’ve had to do special training for my employees on how to clean it up properly and safely.”
About 135 people packed into council chambers and an adjacent room to take part in the 4 ½-hour meeting, which ended after council unanimously approved Coun. Brian Skakun’s motion to form a new task force early in the new year to tackle the city’s social problems. Skakun believes the business community’s concerns have been underrepresented in council discussions.
“Unfortunately it took a real push from the Chamber, the business community, a lot of downtown businesses I guess being outraged with what’s happening to their life savings, to their employees, and other things,” Skakun said.
“We talk about the homeless, the drug addicts downtown as being victims, and I guess they can be, but we also have victims in the business community that have been robbed, harassed, beaten up. I’m so challenged with the notion that that I guess because they’re drug addicts and they’re homeless, they can do this. There’s no consequences for bad behaviour downtown… and these people know that.”
Mayor Lyn Hall said the task force will focus on finding short-term solutions as well as long-term strategies and it will act quickly. In addition to input from the business community, he would like to see representatives of the RCMP, Northern Health, B.C. Housing, housing shelter operators, the Native Friendship Centre and School District 57 participate in the task force.
Council has invited Downtown Prince George and the Chamber of Commerce to speak at the Dec. 16 public meeting and will work out details of how the task force will work.
“It was reassuring to see all the help that was in the council chamber tonight,” Hall said. “People are saying, ‘We’re prepared to help, we’ve got some great ideas, all we want is a few minutes of committee’s time to tell you what we’d like to do.’
“This is a tough challenge and to know there are people who would step up means a lot.”
