By Tara McCarthy
Residents in Centretown West are taking an active role improving safety in their neighbourhood with help from the Ottawa Police Service and city council.
After a meeting in October about prostitution and drug use in the area, the Dalhousie community safety subcommittee was created to develop solutions for homeowners.
“I’m not judgmental, but I live in this neighbourhood and we should not be affected by the sex trade in our daily lives,” says subcommittee chair Pamela Connolly. “As a neighbourhood, we want to live peacefully.”
The group meets once a month at the Dalhousie Community Centre on Somerset Street with representatives from the Ottawa police and city council. Connolly says the eight-member subcommittee examines problems in the community, encourages Neighbourhood Watch groups and develops solutions to curb sex-trade activity.
“The principal focus is to keep awareness about the issues alive,” she says.
Somerset Coun. Diane Holmes organized the initial meeting as a result of concerns about prostitution in the Somerset and Gladstone area. She urged residents to volunteer for membership on a subcommittee that would tackle the issues.
“People wanted something that was going to be long-range. To make sure it was not just a temporary fix.”
A community safety audit was conducted in December to identify concerns.
Connolly says the audit report has recently been released and now the subcommittee will work with the city on issues in the report such as better lighting and increased signage in the community.
“It’s neighbours taking back their neighbourhood,” she says.
Two Neighbourhood Watch groups have been developed over the past few months — making safety even more of a community initiative.
“If nothing else, it’s been great to get to know your neighbours,” says Kathryn Moore, Neighbourhood Watch area co-ordinator for Somerset West. “You look out for people when you know them.”
Moore also sits on the subcommittee as the Neighbourhood Watch representative.
She says the groups have helped set up a buddy system to ensure residents and their homes are safe.
There were three recent break-ins around Moore’s house, which she says prompted her to take action.
“I was really stunned this could happen when I was only a few feet away,” she says.
Each block group includes about 20 houses and is registered with the Ottawa police. Plans for another Neighbourhood Watch group around Arthur Street are set for the spring, while Moore urges other members of the community to get involved.
“It would be great to have a Neighbourhood Watch on every street,” she says.
Since the subcommittee was created, Connolly says, things have gotten better.
Holmes says she is pleased to see people coming forward to work on the problems so that the city, police and community can work together to make the necessary changes.
The subcommittee’s next plan is to distribute a pamphlet to the neighbourhood in the spring. Connolly says the pamphlet project will provide residents with information on who to call or what to do in situations where safety is of concern.
“The most wonderful thing is that a lot more people know each other,” she says. “It’s a lot of little things to make you feel you can really do something.”