I’d like to clarify a couple of points made in two letters published in the Oct. 17 Morning Star.
First, there seems to be ongoing confusion about the mandate of the Activate Safety Task Force. The Task Force was provided a narrow scope of reference and asked to look at the “impact of the street entrenched population on Vernon businesses.”
We were not asked to undertake larger, more complex issues like the root causes of homelessness, addictions, poverty reduction, or social service support. The Task Force was commissioned by Council in response to a desperate plea from downtown business owners in the form of a delegation to City Council. Following a Town Hall in which businesses had the opportunity to bring forward specific concerns, the Task Force presented to Council 46 Task Force recommendations to address the problems caused by some members of the street entrenched population.
One of those recommendations, in response to business concerns about commercial shopping carts blocking downtown sidewalks and impeding pedestrians, involved restricting shopping carts on sidewalks in the downtown core. For some reason, Mayor and Council decided on their own initiative to turn that recommendation into a city-wide ban, and that ban was ultimately abandoned. In my opinion Council’s ban was unnecessary, unwanted, unenforceable, and overly burdensome to homeless people.
This brings me to the letter penned by Dr. Sawatsky. Contrary to his assertion, I have never considered social service providers “part of the problem and not part of the solution.” I have repeatedly made it clear that I unequivocally support the good work being done by those managing the Upper Room Mission and the Gateway Shelter. They know that. What I have not been shy about is the need to address strained relationships between these service providers and their neighbours. If elected as mayor, I intend to begin work on resolving this issue immediately. My commitment to safer streets and crime prevention will actually make it easier for social service agencies to conduct their work.
In my opinion, Vernon has incredible potential to attract skilled workers, white collar professionals, young families, and of course tourists. We can make our city into the true jewel it should be, but to realize that potential we’re going to have to be open and honest about some of the problems standing in the way. Those problems should be addressed head-on and not swept under the carpet and left to fester.
We absolutely need to help those who seek it and continue to advocate for more funding from the province for complex root cause solutions, but we cannot simply walk away from our duty to protect our business community and other citizens from a small number of individuals who ignore basic behavioural expectations.
Council must restore that balance as a starting point, and the only way to begin that process is by having difficult conversations that are long overdue. This is not about an either/or set of solutions. Being willing to help while enforcing minimal standards of behaviour are not mutually exclusive concepts.
Darrin Taylor, Vernon Mayoral Candidate