黑料吃瓜网

Despite the city's formal request for Yellowknife RCMP to have more of a presence in the downtown area last month, the visibility doesn't seem to be there.

In early June, city council passed a resolution recommending police increase their foot and bike patrols downtown, specifically from 52 Avenue to Franklin Avenue (50 Avenue) and from 47 Street to 52 Street. The detachment indicated they would try and do that but so far, they have a total of three instances in a month's time.

The city's reasoning for officers to be more present downtown was in response to visible vandalism, public drinking and open drug use and dealing.

According to RCMP media relations officer Julie Plourde, two members went on bike patrols on June 21, while officers teamed up with the city's municipal enforcement division to go on bike patrols on June 26.

Plourde did not say how many officers were involved.

Plourde also indicated that RCMP had foot and bike patrols on Canada Day with a total of two members for each patrol

She said police don't track how many car patrols they do and that's because they are part of general duties and are done routinely.

黑料吃瓜网 asked whether any of these patrols downtown led to an arrest, but did not hear back before press time.

As previously reported by 黑料吃瓜网, Yellowknife RCMP currently has a staffing gap of about 32 per cent with G Division, which encompasses the entire territory, is short by about 30 per cent.

Coun. Tom McLennan told 黑料吃瓜网 on Thursday that he would like to see more patrols, but he also knows the RCMP is working with limited resources.

"Crime and public safety have perhaps become the biggest issues I hear about from residents," said McLennan. "The RCMP can certainly use their authority and training to address this and being visible is one tool."

McLennan added that although he would appreciate increased RCMP foot and bike patrols, it is not the only solution.

"Most of the issues they are attempting to deal with stem from mental health and addictions, and these are not most effectively dealt with through law enforcement," he said. "More resources are needed for programs like Street Outreach. These programs would ideally have local, specifically-trained mental health professionals who are familiar with the situation and people in Yellowknife."

McLennan noted that these programs also need necessary funding to pay employees for their front-line service.

"Most situations do not need to end at the jail or the hospital," he added. "Yet these are the options with essentially all the funding."

Coun. Steve Payne also noted that police's short-staffing situation likely plays a role in their ability to be more visible downtown.

"It's a start," said Payne, who added that, ideally, he would like to see an even larger boost in visibility in the coming months, regardless if it's a foot, bike or car patrol. "Anything we get at this point, I'm appreciative of."