‘The canary in the coal mine’

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This article was published 15/12/2022 (643 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

To combat crime and violence at the Millennium Library, the city should ensure “eyes on the street” throughout downtown, not just the building itself, according to longtime anti-crime advocate Sel Burrows.

The threat of violence at the library was cast into the spotlight after 28-year-old Tyree Cayer was stabbed to death inside the building Sunday afternoon. The library remains closed to the public.

Burrows, founder of the anonymous telephone crime-reporting Point Powerline system, said short-term security steps could focus on the library itself but much broader work is needed.

“In the short term, having a system where people can be checked for weapons is a reasonable thing to do… But in the longer term, if we want our city to be a nicer place where people don’t have to have these barriers, there’s a whole bunch of low-cost prevention-oriented activities that can take place with existing resources,” he said.

Many inner-city and downtown organizations lock their doors and buzz in visitors individually, so an added security presence, such as restoring the previous metal detector and bag checks at Millennium, shouldn’t seem radical, he said.

While he doesn’t recommend the library lock its doors, he said the fact some neighbouring properties do highlights a need for community-wide safety efforts.

“The issue is beyond the Millennium. The Millennium is the canary in the coal mine,” he said.

Burrows suggested adding new crime-reporting programs for the entire downtown area, including one he proposed last year to councillors in which the city would join forces with a phone-based method for community members to share concerns.

He said the city could reach out to members of the taxi, property management and security industries to help serve as “eyes on the street” and aid reporting, which he expects would help address the problem of repeat offenders.

A well-known community outreach worker who has spent time with the Downtown Community Safety Partnership, Mama Bear Clan and other agencies, believes a focus on attracting more people downtown is critical to make the area safer.

“I think what brings true safety to any downtown in any city is to populate it…. It’s to have people coming downtown, whether they’re living there (or) whether they’re visiting,” said Mitch Bourbonniere. “I think (having) more festivals, more events… (would help).”

Bourbonniere noted there’s already a clear security presence downtown, through agencies that work with vulnerable folks to address the root causes of violence.

“We have a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week presence with downtown safety. We have boots on the ground, people patrolling. That’s happening but (downtown) needs more than that. It needs vibrancy, it needs a neighbourhood feel…. That’s what will make it safe again,” he said.

Meanwhile, the union that represents Winnipeg library staff said employees have reported increased safety risks at multiple city-operated public libraries.

“They’re saying it’s not just Millennium,” said Gord Delbridge, president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500.

Delbridge noted that includes a gun crime reported at the St. John’s library on Salter Street on June 3, when a woman was dragged and her baby’s stroller was knocked over when thieves snatched her purse at the entranceway. Police said the suspects then returned to steal the woman’s car, pointing a gun at a bystander who tried to intervene.

Delbridge said the combined effects of violence, staff shortages and pandemic stresses have left staff at multiple library branches “on the verge of burnout.”

“Though recent incidents occurring in the Millennium Library have brought the issues to the forefront, the safety concerns are a system-wide issue. I have been told by library staff from other branches, that they have experienced violent incidents, including incidents with weapons and verbal harassment on an almost daily basis,” he said.

The city provided the Free Press with annual data on “serious” incidents — including assaults, harassment, threats, verbal abuse and intoxication — at the downtown library over the past five years.

The number of such incidents spiked again this year — with 200 thus far — after much lower numbers in 2020 (37) and 2021 (14), when the library was closed for periods of time owing to public-health measures. There were much higher numbers in 2017 (238) and 2018 (294).

Delbridge said a broader effort to add housing and other supports for people experiencing poverty and homelessness must be part of the solution.

Meanwhile, the city confirmed Millennium Library will not reopen Monday, which was previously listed as the earliest date it could resume operations.

“No reopening date has been established,” city spokesman Adam Campbell said.

Mayor Scott Gillingham said Thursday the downtown library won’t reopen until additional security measures are in place.

Joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Joyanne loves to tell the stories of this city, especially when politics is involved. Joyanne became the city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press in early 2020.

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