Protecting the core of Saskatoon was the topic of discussion at last night’s Downtown Talks community event.
Representatives from the Meewasin Valley Authority, Fire Community Support Team, Mustard Seed, and the Saskatoon Police Department presented to a room full of curious citizens regarding the work they do to ensure safety for all in Saskatoon’s downtown.
210 Pacific Avenue Temporary Emergency Shelter
The opening date for the temporary emergency shelter at 210 Pacific Avenue is now April 1st.
That’s according to Krista-Dawn Kimsey, a member of The Mustard Seed, the organization tasked with operating the upcoming shelter.
At mid-December, the shelter was expected to open in March, one full month before the new timeline suggests.
“From our perspective, we recognize that we’re too little too late. April 1st, you’ve missed the coldest weather, so that was definitely not our hope.”
The shelter was originally supposed to open before winter, but the date was postponed due to much needed building renovations.
Community Support Officers
Rielly Knock, Director of Community Relationships for the Saskatoon Fire Department, says in July, the fire department took over the Community Support Officer program that was run by the Downtown Business Improvement Districts.
“They’ve been able to, since July, respond to 1899 calls for service. They made 966 different agency referrals for individuals. They responded to 339 transit-related occurrences. That was the new piece that we brought on, supporting people on transit.”
He adds that the team of 12 Community Support Officers prides themselves on their response time, which on average is 7 minutes.
Violent Crime
In recent years, crime in Saskatoon has gotten significantly more violent.
That’s directly from those dealing with crime firsthand, Saskatoon’s police and Community Support officers.
Constable Nathan Gawryluk says he talked his own son out of becoming a police officer, as the job is not what’s shown in the movies. He compares the scene several years ago to what he sees today.
“When a gun call would come it, you’d drop everything and go. And we do that now, but that was very few times a year. Now, we get those multiple times a week unfortunately.”
Community Support Officer Tiffany Andrusiak echoed his comments, stating that the drug use is much worse, too.
“I found (several years ago) when I was dealing with someone who was maybe intoxicated with the substance of alcohol, I could still somewhat reason or come up with a safe plan for this person. But some of the drugs that are out there now, they’re sleeping. You can’t talk with a sleeping person.”
Comments were made last night at a community discussion event called Downtown Talks: Protecting Downtown.
Bear Spray
As 2025 progresses, you may notice a heightened presence of Community Mobilization Officers monitoring Saskatoon’s malls.
Constable Nathan Shwartz says one reason for the increase in police presence in Saskatoon’s malls is the uptick in bear spray attacks that are taking place.
“It seems like it’s a more common practice for a lot of youngsters going from mall to mall to mall, which we are trying, this year, to be more proactive, going to these malls and trying to apprehend a lot of these young kids.”
He adds that Police Chief Cam McBride is working hard to change the legislation that allows bear spray to be purchased so easily.
If you find yourself in a situation where bear spray has been deployed in your eyes, Schwartz says milk and baby shampoo have been known to reverse its effects better than water.
The next Downtown Talks event, regarding resourcing, is taking place April 1st. All are welcome to attend.
