25
Apr
2014
By Calvin at 08:49 GMT, 12 years ago
Every once in a while I come across an upbeat story describing how a community with a lot of crime has organised itself and made a positive difference. Vanier, a district of Ottawa, is just one of those places.
Wikipedia says this about Vanier ‘Vanier has undergone significant changes since 2007, when it was an area associated with crime and prostitution. Starting with an area closer to the Rideau River, it is increasingly considered a target for gentrification. It is one of the last relatively inexpensive Ottawa neighbourhoods with a desirable location next to downtown.’
The news report tells us that ‘Crime Prevention Ottawa launched ‘Together for Vanier’ in 2007, which sparked a surge of residents becoming involved in the community. The result was a community association and a beautification committee, which today continue to operate and garner interest from new and long-time residents alike.
‘In 2012, Crime Prevention Ottawa announced it would be pulling its support from Vanier so it could focus on other areas of the city. At the time, the crime rate had significantly declined and reporting crimes was at a steady increase. There were a number of neighbourhood watches in operation and the community association and the beautification committee had created strong relationships with its community police officer and the area's city councillor.
‘The hope, Crime Prevention Ottawa said at the time, was that residents would continue to work in a crime prevention capacity.’
It seems that this has indeed happened, so well done to the residents of Vanier and good luck with their continued crime prevention efforts!
For the full story go to Ottawa Community News: http://www.ottawacommunitynews.com/news-story/4482481-residents-launch-crime-prevention-vanier/
