Impressed by the initial results of the City of North Bay's Outreach Security Teams Pilot, a committee of North Bay City Council has approved the extension of the initiative through January 2024.
"It's working, it's as simple as that," said Mayor Peter Chirico about the pilot program during a meeting of the Community Safety and Well-Being ad hoc committee. Chirico also recommended reallocating resources away from the downtown-waterfront amenities such as the splash pad and outdoor courts to more pressing areas as the weather cools.
Coun. Mark King, also an ad hoc committee member noted, "We've had some pretty good results here. It's paying dividends in the downtown core. We should extend it, without question."
See related: Council approves $150K downtown security and outreach pilot
In July, the council approved the transfer of up to $150,000 to the Community Safety Well-Being operating budget for outreach and security. The pilot program, overseen by the by-law enforcement division, extended security and outreach throughout the downtown business core and was to be funded until October and then reviewed. Future funding for the program will be discussed with a line likely included in the 2024 budget for the program.
The program is designed to create a safe and welcoming space for patrons, visitors, and users of the district amenities while increasing connection for those who find themselves unhoused and unsupported, according to a staff report.
Beginning in June, the City of North Bay added security patrols in the areas of the volleyball sand courts, multi-use courts, splash pad, and the Heritage train and carousels on a trial basis. At the outset, the program's focus was on the city's core, waterfront, and associated amenities, from noon to midnight on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. The program also augmented the existing Healthy Community Ambassador Program (HCAP), which operates from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. during the week.
"I'm confident this money is a prudent investment in our community," said Coun. Gary Gardiner in July in support of adding the outreach component.
"The inclusion of an outreach worker with each security person, I think is a really positive change," Coun. Justine Mallah said then. "It reflects that this is not just about security but also helping those in need and connecting them to resources available in our community."
"It was considered critical to pair outreach workers with security personnel," added Gardiner, who is the chair of the ad hoc committee. "Outreach workers are specifically trained to address individuals in distress to de-escalate potentially volatile situations and to provide connections to key service providers in our community."
With the program poised to expire at the end of this month and with just over half of the original $150,000 upset budget remaining, the committee, pleased by the results so far, agreed, at the behest of Coun. Lana Mitchell, to extend the program through the first month of next year in an attempt to prevent gaps in services around the holidays. The remainder of the unused $150,000 will be available to the program.
Brent Kalinowski is overseeing the implementation of the City's Community Safety and Well-Being Plan and is compiling data by reviewing incident reports, including police calls for service, positive social connections to resources, and public feedback to gauge the qualitative impact. The outreach/security teams have been documenting incidents for review. Measures are being created to examine the results post-pilot for efficacy and future considerations.
Kalinowski has observed North Bay, like many other municipalities, is experiencing an increase in the incidence of social issues impacting the community that include addictions, mental health, and homelessness — some all at once.
"Although a number of our community resources employ ‘Outreach’ social support services, those services predominantly exist Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.," Kalinowski reported. "There is an opportunity to pro-actively address some of the non-criminal, and, at times, disruptive behaviours within the core, while community partners continue to collaborate towards enhanced longer-term solutions to address the root causes."