Timmins city councillor takes police chief on tour of crime hotspots

Timmins City Counc. Bill Gvozdanovic took Timmins Police Chief Dan Foy on a tour of his ward in the Schumacher area.

DESCRIPTION Used in internal listings and as fallback for alt-text in articles. Timmins city councillor Bill Gvozdanovic and Police Chief Dan Foy take a walk around Schumacher, the ward Gvozdanovic represents, and discuss areas of concern. June 1/23 (Lydia Chubak/CTV Northern Ontario)

Gvozdanovic said he has a growing concern about crime in his ward and showed the chief some troublesome locations.

“People want to enjoy their property and they’re starting to get a little bit nervous and, you know, I have to bring that concern to the police chief and the council table along with all the other residents that are concerned and there is a lot of them, a lot," the city councillor said.

It's now known as an area where the city's first triple shooting took place.

"We need to do more. We need to work with partners, we need to work at preventing social disorder issues. We need to look at helping people that are in a vulnerable position in their lives," said Foy.

"And that is not only done by the police, but we play a part in the bigger system where partners come together."

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Gvozdanovic showed the chief buildings where there are squatters and also an area where neighbours are afraid to let their children play outside.

"There has to be some kind of a strategy and we need to work together as a community to try to figure this out, OK. We need to keep the police engaged," said Gvozdanovic.

"We need to call them if they see anything out of the ordinary and if it takes a while to get there, just be patient."

The councillor said he appreciates the chief taking the time to listen.

“Actually, right now, we’re embarking on a new strategic plan where we’ll be doing some consultations with the public," said Foy.

"And for me, it was great to seize this opportunity to see what people are relating to our councillor first-hand and for me to see it."

The chief thanked Gvozdanovic for his passion in relaying residents' concerns and assured him the Timmins Police Service is paying attention and is committed to working with its partners to make the situation better.