Thirteen new hires including constables and special constables, as well as a full time psychologist, are part of the budget hiring plan for 2020 at the Saskatoon Police Service.

And when addressing an increase in violence and crime in downtown Saskatoon, Mayor Charlie Clark points to the officers being deployed along 20th Street, including in the Pleasant Hill area near the proposed site of the Safe Consumption Site.

He acknowledges there has been a ramp up in difficulties for a year but notes that the last ten days have increased sensitivity around the Lighthouse.

“The hatchet incident, the person with a rifle at Hudson’s, and then there was another shooting on 8th Street, the downtown has been a hotspot.”

But the Mayor says the issue is broader than the downtown and outlined a new plan by the Saskatoon Police Service to go back to officers policing smaller areas. The city has been divided into several main divisions for many years but will now go back to having districts inside of those divisions for police to patrol.

Charlie Clark points out the Lighthouse does not have a 24 hour security presence.

“It’s a challenge for the staff of the Lighthouse, it’s a challenge for the residents of the Lighthouse and its a challenge for the surrounding areas. Historically they’ve had to fund-raise to get that in place. I believe that should be part of a facility that has many people who have mental health and addictions issues all in one spot in the downtown.”

The Mayor says he has been talking to the province about funding a security system for the Lighthouse.