New East Village Safety Hub offers a workspace for police, social agencies

Calgary now has a second safety hub, this one located in the East Village.

The new East Village Safety Hub will be a more casual setting for Calgary Police Services (CPS) officers to complete office work, take meetings, or take a break –  instead of driving out of the area to the District 1 station located in Ramsay.

The hub is a three-year pilot program in partnership with the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC), the City of Calgary, CPS and the Alpha House Society’s Downtown Outreach Addictions Partnership (DOAP) program, and is located in the lowest level of the CMLC's head office in the remodelled St. Louis Hotel.

"As the community grows and evolves, so too does the nature of the needs of the community," said Kate Thompson, CMLC president and CEO during a launch event on Thursday morning.

The pilot has a shared cost of $300,000 split between the City of Calgary and CMLC.

Calgary Bylaw officers and members of the DOAP team will also use the space as part of a multi-agency approach to address social disorder.

"When we think about the complexity of the social issues that we're responding to in the community, I think this collaboration requires all of these partners to ensure better outcomes for the folks that we see," said Kathy Christiansen, executive director for the Alpha House Society.

She says a shared working space allows the frontline services to share contextual information about a person in-need.

SUPPORTIVE SPACE

The hub isn't designed to be a full police station or processing centre -- instead of barred holding cells there's a kitchenette with comfy couches, computer stations, a boardroom for meetings and even bicycle storage for CPS officers.

"It's not like an open-front counter-type facility, but rather a gathering space where we can work on planning and working with community," said CPS Deputy Chief Chad Tawfic.

Tawfic says establishing a police presence in the East Village improves the visibility of uniformed officers and helps reduce response wait times.

"Being right in the heart of the situation helps for response times and to be able to respond to emerging events," he said.

The East Village location has been modelled after the Stephen Avenue Safety Hub, which opened in 2021.

This centre has an annual budget of $315,000 and is funded through the City's Downtown Community Safety Initiatives Fund.

Councillor Terry Wong, whose Ward 7 area encompasses both safety hubs, says there are ongoing discussions between council and the Calgary Police Commission about a permanent police location added in the core.

"What's most important though is visibility. We want to be able to see our public safety and public support resources in the downtown care, so people feel confident," he said.

Gregory John lives in the East Village and says he likes the hub's emphasis on including social agencies in responses.

"I support the cooperation between social services, the Calgary police and the community to create a community-based solution that works for everyone," said John.

Others who work in the area question the focus on select neighbourhoods.

"I can't help but think that it has to do with protecting the affluence or veneer of East Village, and these new communities and the tourist attractions," said Ross Macdonell.

The East Village Safety hub will operate 24/7.