Charlie Clark announced his platform regarding safety Thursday, stating that every neighbourhood should be a safe neighbourhood.
If re-elected Clark says he has three goals for the next four years including strengthening police and community partnerships, addressing the root causes of crime and making neighbourhoods safe. He says he is encouraged by the progress made in his first term as mayor, saying the police department and community agencies have learned much from each other, and are pursuing evidence based strategies towards harm reduction. Clark says there are also local citizens working with community partners on neighbourhood level solutions.
Clark suggests we are at a crucial moment where a collaborative approach is bringing agencies, government, Indigenous organizations, and businesses together to change and challenge failing systems, while delivering outcomes. Clark states he is committed to reducing homicides in the community, and getting people off the streets and into homes. He wants to see more youth finish school and gets jobs rather than turning to gangs and crime, and wants to fix unsafe properties in neighbourhoods that he says become a blight on communities.
For each goal Clark outlined steps he would like to take within them. For policing he would like to expand the police and crisis team model so more addictions and health workers are available to be the first line of response. He will also continue the work of the Community Safety and Well-Being Partnership in a coordinated approach with the Provincial Government, and build on the work of the Community Mobilization Unit and the partnership with the Ohkitchitawak Patrol Group. Clark pointed to an initiative from Police Chief Troy Cooper, to have a two tier policing model utilizing community safety officers instead of uniformed police officers.
To address the route causes of crime, Clark wants to tackle the mental health and addictions crisis. He says he wants to implement the Safe Community Action Alliance recommendations on crystal meth, this includes pushing for more crystal meth and fentanyl specific treatment options. Clark says there are important steps to take in response to homelessness, the Lighthouse and downtown safety. These steps include a task force that will develop a new shelter model for Saskatoon with the potential relocation of some services of the Lighthouse to reduce downtown pressure. He says this will be a challenge and the answer isn’t to build Lighthouse 2.0 but to evolve it by moving to rapid re-housing. Clark would like to also engage youth with support networks, facilities, social enterprises and by communicating with young leaders to develop solutions for them.
Clark’s priorities on making neighbourhoods safe include fixing boarded up houses and nuisance properties, stating in 2020 the Fire Department demolished 14 houses and 20 more have been fixed up and deemed safe housing again. He commits to supporting better coordination and intervention when dealing with these property concerns. Clark also wanted to build greater coordination with community associations for neighbourhood safety, using local knowledge to play and implement safety initiatives.
