Love-hate relationship

When Mark Gaboury and his wife moved to the Exchange District from Waverley Heights in April, they knew they’d love it.

“It’s a nice neighbourhood. My wife loves the condo,” he said, adding they like being near the arena so they can easily attend Jets games and concerts and they take in the museums that are close by.

But they have encountered something they weren’t expecting.

In seven months, their truck has been broken into or vandalized 10 times. First, they rented a parking stall right by their building. The truck’s glass was shattered once and the protective covering that was later placed over the broken window was ripped open six times.

So, they rented a spot at a different lot that has more lighting and security features. Gaboury left open the centre console of the vehicle, which was empty, and put a bright yellow card on each window stating there are no valuables in the truck. But one window was smashed, and again, the protective wrap covering it has been slit twice, most recently on Monday.

Gaboury said the experience has been “so frustrating” and he wonders why city politicians encourage people to move downtown.

“The city keeps talking about making downtown Winnipeg more vibrant, and trying to encourage people to move downtown, (but) who’s going to want to do that if their windows keep getting smashed?” Gaboury said.

Installation of a new window in his truck has been delayed and he needs to meet with an MPI adjuster to get an estimate for scratches and interior damage caused by the break-ins. Until then, his dealership continues to put plastic on the window.

It isn’t just the vandalism, he blames the municipal government for not boosting the police presence or providing more resources to agencies that work with the homeless.

“I don’t know the solution 100 per cent, I just think that more police presence would be nice, to see a car drive around the neighbourhood,” he said. “I mean, how many people do you see walking down the street dressed up in a balaclava that shouldn’t be kind of looked at as suspicious in the neighbourhood?”

Vivian Santos, who was just re-elected as the area councillor, said complaints about vehicle break-ins and vandalism in the Exchange District have spiked in the past few weeks.

“Definitely an increase even just getting emails stating that nothing’s really been stolen out of their vehicles,” she said. “It’s a matter of vagrancy, and they’re just smashing windows or cutting the plastic from vehicles where they’ve previously been smashed.”

She agrees police presence in the Exchange should be increased, including foot patrols. She said police have been tasked with collecting security camera footage from property owners to try to establish a pattern to the break-ins.

The problem is, many surface-level parking lots do not have cameras, and if they do, they are broken and stripped for copper.

She has recommended residential property owners consider erecting gated fencing around their surface lots.

Impark, which manages many of the lots in the Exchange District, did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Santos, who was appointed chair of city council’s property and development committee this week, called it an opportunity to “start those conversations to see who can start investing in more in the Exchange District.”

The Exchange District BIZ said many residents share Gaboury’s concerns, which is why it’s conducting a wide-ranging safety strategy.

The review, which includes City of Winnipeg staff, police, business owners, residents and other stakeholders, is expected to be released in late December or early January.

“We’re focusing in on real, practical actions that the neighbourhood as a whole, as a community, can do things about,” said executive director David Pensato. “Hopefully… that will include the city partnering with us on those things.”

The strategy, organized by a 15-person advisory committee, is gathering information — a petition on key safety issues was sent to stakeholders Thursday — and Pensato, like Santos, hopes the new city council has a fresh outlook on nagging problems.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do with this new council, and with some of the signals that the mayor was sending during the election campaign, that we can really just make a push here,” he said.

Duane Rohne has lived in the Exchange since 2017, and has contributed to the BIZ’s strategy planning. While his vehicle hasn’t been targeted — he and his wife park in a secured underground lot — he has witnessed break-ins and called police to report them.

“All you have to do is walk around the area and you can see the evidence of it having occurred, and if you’re out at the right times, you can actually witness it occurring,” he said. “(It’s) unfortunate, because if it’s obvious to me, then it should be obvious to all of the agencies that are responsible for security and law enforcement, and they seem to be, in some respects, absent.”

For him, the priority is creating a cyclical safety structure: if the city can improve safety in the Exchange, it will bring more people to the area, both visitors and residents, and more eyes on the street creates a safer, more inviting neighbourhood.

“A surveillance camera is not a substitute for an actual set of eyes on the street,” he said. “Surveillance camera simply tells you what happened; it doesn’t stop it. Eyes on the streets prevent that type of activity.”

malak.abas@winnipegfreepress.com