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Global News
10-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
Safety groups to improve coordination, says Winnipeg mayor
Winnipeg's mayor is promising to improve inner-city safety by improving communication and coordination among the numerous safety groups already working in the area. Mayor Scott Gillingham called the Safe Winnipeg Initiative a 'blanket of safety' for Winnipeg's West End and Downtown. He toured some West End businesses Monday afternoon with Winnipeg Police Board Chair Markus Chambers, Daniel McIntyre Coun. Cindy Gilroy, Winnipeg West End BIZ Executive Director Joe Kornelsen, and other City of Winnipeg representatives. Angela Hyland has owned and operated Flowers in Bloom on Ellice Avenue for the past 10 years. She told Global News she's arrived at work to find graffiti scrawled on her storefront and has had to install shatterproof windows and a pricey surveillance camera system. Some potential thieves have climbed the brick wall into the shop's backyard. Even so, Hyland acknowledges that her business hasn't been targeted as often as many others in the area. Story continues below advertisement 'They can't make any money off of flowers,' she said. Still, she welcomes the idea of more efficient street patrols, from the Winnipeg Police Service or other agencies – for her and her neighbouring businesses' sakes. 'I want Ellice to become more vibrant,' she said. Mayor Gillingham said the initiative will see the Winnipeg Police Service's downtown foot patrols, the Downtown Community Safety Partnership, the City of Winnipeg's Community Safety Team, and the West End and Downtown BIZ's foot patrols sharing communication to make the best use of their resources and skills. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'We want to make sure that we roll out a formal plan to make sure we are identifying the gaps and the overlaps in public safety,' Gillingham told reporters after the tour. 'Rather than have the overlap and the gaps, let's do a better job of coordinating all this so our downtown is safer, the businesses get the help they need, residents get the help they need, and the people that are struggling get the help they need as well.' For Cobra Collectibles owner Mike Paille, that help can't come soon enough. Paille has 65 cameras inside and outside his Sargent Avenue shop, but it still doesn't deter thieves. Paille told Gillingham he's seen some perpetrators wave at the cameras before targeting his business. Story continues below advertisement 'I really think working together is the only way we are going to stop the problem, because individually, nothing's really getting done,' Paille said. He gave Gillingham a file folder full of his concerns and accounts of incidents that he and other area businesses have experienced. He hopes it can inform the city's crime strategy. 'Here's everything we deal with as a business. Go through it and you can understand what we understand,' he said. Still, some businesses are skeptical of the plan. Subodh Vatsyayan and his family run Bread N Biryani, an Indian restaurant at the corner of Ellice Avenue and Maryland Street. The restaurant was not part of Gillingham's tour. 'We do not want to be collecting these,' Vatsyayan told Global News, holding five cards from Winnipeg police, each given to him by an officer responding to incidences of theft or violence. View image in full screen Subodh Vatsyayan of Bread N Biryani on Ellice Avenue holds cards, each one given to him by Winnipeg police officers following an incidence of violence or theft at his restaurant. Iris Dyck/Global News Vatsyayan showed Global News surveillance footage of a man entering the restaurant, picking up a chair and throwing it into the dining room before quickly running outside. He said break-ins to customers' and their own vehicles in their parking lot are common. He's delaying repairing a window cracked by a violent guest as claiming the damage through his insurance would raise his premium. Story continues below advertisement Vatsyayan says he sees some of the same offenders back on the street, saying 'there is no use' in better coordination without tougher penalties for retail crimes. 'No one wants to come here in the evening, they order online,' he said. Gillingham did not give a timeline as to when the initiative will be fully implemented.
Winnipeg Free Press
05-05-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Crime-weary West End business owners get together to discuss costly, dangerous problem, hear about solutions
Frustrated by vandalism, shoplifting and break-ins, West End business owners gathered Monday to discuss grassroots crime-prevention strategies. The inaugural Small Business and Retail Crime Prevention Conference drew a modest crowd to the West End Cultural Centre throughout the morning. Entrepreneurs and residents were offered a full day of networking and educational programming, including speeches from city police and political leaders. 'It's not just about people taking stuff, but smashing stuff, breaking stuff; the lack of respect,' said Michael Paille, who arranged the event in response to crime at his Sargent Avenue store, which retails comics, games and toys. WAYNE GLOWACKI / FREE PRESS FILES Small business owner Michael Paille organized the inaugural Small Business and Retail Crime Prevention Conference. 'We're small businesses; we should be worrying about staff, rent, utilities. We shouldn't be worrying about cameras, alarms and whether a person is stealing,' he said. Paille, who launched the Sargent Avenue Business Community group about four years ago, estimated theft in his store has roughly doubled during that time. Product losses continue to cost him about $2,000 every month, despite numerous security upgrades, including cameras and metal window coverings. 'It starts to add up. I have to start raising up prices, but then, at the same time, people don't want to pay more,' he said. Staff safety also remains a primary concern, he said, describing an incident last summer in which he was assaulted and suffered a concussion after confronting a suspected shoplifter. Paille hopes the conference sends a message of solidarity to retailers, staff and shoppers. He believes they can help address the problem by bolstering communication with each other and police. 'If you see something, don't be afraid to report it. I get so many people who say, 'Oh, well, that's not my problem,' but it's all of us,' Paille said. 'Working together is the only way we are going to make a difference.' Tyler Slobodgian, a senior policy analyst for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said crime, safety and operating costs are the primary concerns of its membership. A recent survey of the group's roughly 4,500 members found about 51 per cent reported crime or safety issues within the past year. That's up from 42 per cent the year prior, he said. According to federation data, it costs Manitoba small business owners an average of $2,500 per year to keep up with vandalism and theft, Slobodgian said. 'For some, we've heard of way more than that,' Slobodgian told the Free Press. 'It's increasingly more difficult for business owners and their employees to go about their day-to-day business.' Like Paille, Slobodgian urged business owners and the public to report any crimes to police so the issue can be accurately tracked and presented to authorities. Notre Dame MLA Malaya Marcelino spoke during Monday's conference about how the provincial government is addressing crime in her constituency. She said area residents have 'consistently' asked for improvements to cleanliness, safety and affordable recreational programming in the neighbourhood. The province has partnered with the Downtown Community Safety Partnership to fund an $800,000 cleanup program that employs six former offenders from the Headingley Correctional Centre, she said. Marcelino has also set up an anonymous phone tip line for the Notre Dame area, she said. The service allows residents to utilize the Safer Neighbourhoods and Communities Act and report properties suspected of selling drugs. Those tips can later be investigated by police. Since late 2021, community tips have resulted in the closure of about 16 properties, Marcelino said. To boost recreational opportunities, Marcelino said her office has prepared a proposal to transform inactive rail lines into active transportation paths, calling the project the West Lands Greenway. The proposal is currently in the hands of former federal cabinet minister Lloyd Axworthy, who was retained by the NDP government in October to complete a two-year study into the relocation of rail lines and yards that currently occupy high-value property in Winnipeg's core. It will be subject to a public consultation on May 23, Marcelino said. Ravi Ramberran — who owns several Winnipeg restaurants, including Four Crowns Restaurant and Hotel on McPhillips Street — said retail crimes must be taken seriously by politicians and justice officials before more people are injured or killed. He said he has been threatened with guns and knives, and was once attacked with bear spray at work. His staff have suffered similar abuse, Ramberran said. 'For us, it's a daily occurrence and it's very frustrating,' he said. 'The people that commit these crimes… have an entitlement that they're allowed to behave the way they want to.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The restaurateur was among those who attended Monday's conference. He called for stricter penalties for repeat offenders. He said there is a misconception that people committing crimes are homeless and vulnerable, arguing instead many incidents are perpetrated by organized criminals with little fear of the law. Paille agreed. 'Yes, we have a homeless problem, but they are not the ones stealing or breaking into places. If you watch the cameras, the people doing it have cars, they have vans…. They are not doing it because they are hungry.' Tyler SearleReporter Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press's city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic's creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler. Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CBC
05-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Grassroots crime prevention conference aims to reduce theft in Winnipeg's West End
Social Sharing Some entrepreneurs on Winnipeg's Sargent Avenue are fed up with the vandalism, shoplifting and break-ins they say have become all too common in their West End businesses — and one has organized his own crime-prevention conference to address the issue. Michael Paille is the owner of Cobra Collectibles, a Sargent Avenue shop between Furby and Langside streets that's filled with comics, retro games and toys. He estimates theft in his store has doubled in the last five years. "They're not just coming in stealing small stuff. They literally will look at you and try to grab as much as they can and walk out the door,"said Paille. "It's happening everywhere, and if it doesn't happen while you're open, they try to break in." Paille said he's installed more than 60 cameras in his shop, put metal blinds over the windows and hired a security guard who works on the weekend, but those measures aren't cheap. "That's costing for a small business. That's pretty well most of our profit." Paille said he's been working with other businesses in the area to address the problem, but decided something more needed to be done. He started up his own conference, called the Retail Crime Prevention Conference, which is set to run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday at the West End Cultural Centre. "Any business owner is welcome," he said. The conference will feature a full day of seminars and discussions focused on crime prevention and strategies tailored specifically for small businesses, including information about security guards, alarm systems and other options for small businesses to increase safety. Next door to Cobra Collectibles is X-Cues, a café and lounge that's been in the neighbourhood for almost 60 years. Owner Sal Infantino said he plans to go to Monday's conference, because he's also seen an increase in crime and vandalism in recent years. "They've caused thousands of dollars of damage, and of the couple of break-ins we've had, they've never taken more than a couple hundred dollars," Said Infantino. "I'd gladly give [someone] $50 not to break my windows." He hopes the conference will bring the community together to collaborate on reducing crime in the area. "We want to save this community, because it's a great community. I've been here my whole life, and I have no plans to go anywhere else." Infantino said when the Winnipeg Police Service put foot patrol officers in the area over the holiday season, it helped to curb some of the petty crime happening in the area, but when the patrols stopped, the crime picked up again. No silver-bullet solution The Canadian Federation of Independent Business will be speaking at the crime prevention conference. Tyler Slobogian, a senior policy analyst with the advocacy organization, said 52 per cent of its roughly 4,500 members have had direct experience with crime or community safety issues in the past year, up 10 per cent from the year prior. He said while there's no silver bullet to solve crime, he plans to offer some tips for small businesses. "A message we've been sending to [small business owners] recently is to report all the crimes. Even if you don't think it might make a difference right away, in the end it could," Slobogian said. He said CFIB members have spent an average of $5,000 over the last three years on different security measures. Most of that was for preventative measures, "but also that could be fixing a broken window, or reparative measures as well," he said. The business federation is also encouraging consumers to support local businesses, and consider compassion as well as convenience when shopping. In addition to the CFIB, speakers scheduled for Monday's conference include Justice Minister Matt Wiebe, Crime Stoppers, the Bear Clan patrol and the Winnipeg Police Service. Winnipeg police Const. Dani McKinnon said reporting crime is essential to identifying problem areas in neighbourhoods. Police rely on that crime data to determine "action plans" and how best to use their resources — both in daily operations and in special projects, McKinnon said in an email. Last week, Winnipeg police Chief Gene Bowers said the service will add 12 foot patrols to the downtown area by the end of June through funding from the provincial government, bringing the total number in the area up to 36.
