A new survey suggests more people in Saskatoon feel unsafe while spending time downtown.
Insightrix Research surveyed 627 people in April (the month after a stabbing outside of a downtown movie theatre) and it found the majority of respondents felt less safe downtown than they did when the last survey was done in 2013.
Respondents also said they believe drug dealing, loitering, public drunkenness and panhandling have all increased in the last two years.
The percentage of people who said they have seen aggressive panhandling is up 16 per cent from 2013.
Respondents who feel unsafe downtown said their biggest concern is being mugged or assaulted followed by panhandling.
When it comes to the three business districts, respondents said they feel safest in Broadway, followed by downtown then Riversdale. Their feelings of safety decrease at night.
The city’s committee on planning, development and community services will look at the survey’s results at a meeting next week as it reviews whether or not to keep a pilot program aimed at making business districts safer.
The Community Support Program was introduced in Saskatoon two years ago. The program deploys five uniformed officers who walk the streets, interact with residents and vulnerable people and issue bylaw tickets. The pilot program costs $450,000 a year.
The Insightrix poll found 40 per cent of respondents who know about the program think it has increased safety in Saskatoon’s downtown, Broadway and Riversdale neighbourhoods. Of the 357 businesses that responded to the survey, 90 per cent said they’d like the program to continue.
Previous reports have said it’s difficult to directly assess the impact of the program.
On Tuesday, the city’s standing policy committee on planning, development and community services will consider a report recommending the Community Support Program receive permanent status.
