The Moose Jaw Police Service (MJPS) recently collaborated with Square One Community, Inc. on another community conversation — this time on the safety of the downtown core, and what is being done to address local concerns.
The conversation was held in the Moose Jaw Public Library (MJPL) Theatre on May 10. It was endorsed by local organizations representing businesses in Moose Jaw and surrounding areas, including Tourism Moose Jaw, the Downtown Moose Jaw Association (DMJA), and the Moose Jaw & District Chamber of Commerce.
“Anybody who was concerned could come and participate, and that’s really what Square One is trying to do, is build collaboration and education with everyone who’s working on these issues in our city,” explained Crystal Froese, the vice-chair for Square One and a member of city council.
“I thought it went very well, the people who came were very engaged. Some people had some difficult questions to be answered, and I thought our presenters did a terrific job. … It’s definitely not a perfect situation. There are gaps in services, there are gaps in funding, and there are myths out there, and the only way to find that kind of information out is to attend an event where you have the opportunity to ask questions.”
Froese said it is clear that people want and need more information, and dialogues will continue in the name of transparency and openness.
Square One recently took possession of William Milne Place on Fairford for the purpose of developing a warming/cooling space during the day, and a women’s shelter overnight. It’s a major step in addressing Moose Jaw’s social issues, but has raised eyebrows from some organizations in the area who have sought reassurance on what safety policies the shelter might have.
“Any discussion like this, where we can open up dialogue between our business owners, the [MJPS], Square One, us at the DMJA, Tourism Moose Jaw, and the Chamber, this is something we fully support, and we think will really help to ensure the success of all these initiatives,” said Geoff Anderson, general manager of the Moose Jaw Co-op and current chair of the DMJA.
“The intent behind these discussions is safety and trying to mitigate some of the challenges that are facing all members of the community of Moose Jaw and district. We need to continue these conversations moving forward.”
Moose Jaw Police Service presentation
MJPS Chief Rick Bourassa and Superintendent Taylor Mickleborough were the first presenters. They outlined steps Moose Jaw’s police have taken to address concerns, including increasing foot and bike patrol presence downtown and in Crescent Park, opening their lobby as a shelter of last resort during extreme winter weather, and increasing training in de-escalation techniques and effective communication with people in distress.
Bourassa noted that unlike other agencies, the police are available 24/7, which makes them the only resort in some situations. It means they have to get better at being communicators, knowing the community, and helping people in need find appropriate resources.
“We spent a lot of time training our people on interrogating suspects, and what happened for years is that we just used that model for everybody — victims, people reporting things, and someone finally pointed out, you know, that’s absolutely wrong,” Bourassa said. “Stop looking for deception, and start listening to truth. … We police chiefs in the province are always pushing for more and more mandatory training on that.”
Mickleborough wanted to reassure participants that Moose Jaw is safe, despite slight upticks in crime during the pandemic.
“The reality is, nowadays, you go on the internet, you see somebody type something into a chat group, and then it kind of takes on a life of its own,” Mickleborough said. He presented data to the audience showing that about 75 per cent of their calls are disturbance- or disruption-related rather than criminal.
“We definitely were hearing a lot [on social media] that there were problems that were out of control downtown, that there were people scaring other people, that it wasn’t as safe as it used to be.” Mickleborough explained. He said he did not want to trivialize anyone’s concerns, but “I can tell you that … things have remained fairly consistent over the last five and ten years downtown. We’re not seeing a major uptick in violent offences.”
Bourassa and Mickleborough reiterated many times during their presentation that the MJPS are public employees and should be called when needed, whether it’s a potentially harmful situation or a just an uncertain, confusing one.
“We might not be the best resource for a certain situation, but we should be able to connect people with the best resource when you call us. … That’s what we’re here for, is to increase community safety,” Mickleborough added. “I realize that’s not always the case, so not everyone feels safe when they see us. … We’re never going to be perfect, but we’ll try our best for sure.”
Cheantelle Fisher and Lori Deets
Cheantelle Fisher and Lori Deets were the event’s final presenters. Fisher is the newly hired general manager for Square One’s new shelter, and presented her vision so far for how the location will evolve.
“We are creating a warming or cooling space, depending on the season, which is also a centre for success … whatever that looks like for our clients, and we’re a safe place to rest.” Fisher explained. “Folks can come and access services like programming from different partner organizations, assistance in writing a resume, applying for work, looking for housing, using computers … The goal there is to allow folks to feel like they have some control over their lives and allow them the dignity that they deserve as human beings.”
At night, William Milne Place will be Moose Jaw’s first and only dedicated women’s shelter.
“We can’t be successful if we don’t have a safe place to put our heads at night and wake up in the morning knowing that we’re OK, and we get to start the next day at our best,” Fisher added.
Deets is a newly elected member of the Square One board and the chair of the Wakamow Aboriginal Community Association (WACA), which has been ramping up its activities and connections with other community organizations. WACA now has its office in the Moose Jaw Cultural Centre, where it is leading the way to develop a Community Safety Host program.
Community Safety Hosts are fully trained and licensed security guards with additional qualifications in effectively communicating with people in crisis.
“They will have their standard 40-hour commissioner services and then as well they would be trained in trauma-informed care and non-violent crisis intervention,” Deets explained. “They'd know the community, they'd know the resources, they'd know how to work with people, and they'd be able to help people one-on-one. A lot of the time people have a specific need [to be taken care of] and sometimes they end up having crisis around that.”
The program is based on a Winnipeg approach and on recent work at the MJPL meant to increase the safety of both library staff and library clients experiencing homelessness, mental health issues, and/or substance use disorders.
