It was with no surprise that I read of the unfortunate stabbing of a beer vendor employee in my neighbourhood last week. Just three days after that, there was a big brawl in the vendor’s parking lot, replete with multiple emergency responders.

We know our city has problems — drugs, poverty, crime, infrastructure (oof, Graham Avenue). So it’s unsurprising, if not discouraging, that West Broadway isn’t turning a corner in terms of reflecting these issues. But it is somewhat of a surprise our city councillor continues to be silent on it, especially with an election looming.

Recently, the Free Press published alarming statistics about homelessness in our city, and noted the top two wards for encampment populations. In first place, we have Point Douglas, home to urban missions, outreach organizations and ample secluded stretches of riverbank — all amenities needed by folks struggling with addiction, poverty and homelessness.

In second place, we have the head-scratching locale of Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry. This might cause one to wonder what on earth is going on in these neighbourhoods, considering we don’t generally view them as high-crime areas and certainly not as parts of the city struggling with poverty. What might we be missing in the fine details as to why this ward ranks so highly in homelessness and crime? The ward name itself is misleading, because a neighbourhood that’s part of the riding, but not named — West Broadway — is in a continual state of crisis.