The Downtown Prince George Safe, Clean, and Inclusive Committee, which was formed to tackle social issues in the city, held its inaugural meeting on Wednesday (Jan. 22).
The committee’s first-ever meeting took place at city hall and featured member introductions, a progress update on city issues from each member, and a brief discussion around budget timelines.
“I have a sense of relief,” Mayor Lyn Hall tells PrinceGeorgeMatters following the meeting.
“The relief is that we have got the committee together. We have met for the first time and we have had an opportunity to get to know each other.”
The committee was established at the Dec. 16 public council meeting to advise city staff on priorities and strategies related to key issues, and work required for addressing social issues throughout Prince George with a focus on the downtown core.
The decision to form the select committee followed a public consultation on Dec. 2, which saw hundreds of people flow into council chambers to voice their concerns relating to homelessness, drug use, crime and other social issues facing the city.
“We have the RCMP, we have business owners we have people who run shelters, we have people who work with the friendship centers,” says Hall.
“There’s a great cross-section here and part of the relief, for me, is knowing there is support around the table and we can draw from that expertise.”
The committee includes representatives from the Prince George Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Prince George, Gateway Business Improvement Association, Prince George RCMP, Northern Health Authority, BC Housing, Association Advocating for Women and Community (AWAC), Prince George Native Friendship Centre, as well as five community members.
“This is a big deal in our city and it’s multi-layered and it's difficult work, but there’s a good group here that are absolutely committed to this.”
Hall says in the next meeting, the committee will discuss the proposed Downtown, Safe, Clean, and Inclusive Service Enhancement Package because its recommendations have a financial component and will need to go to council before budget time.
Afterwards, the committee will continue discussions focusing on issues and areas including RCMP presence, bylaw service presence, shelters, BC Housing and other related topics.
As of yet, the committee is mandated to meet until June 30, 2020, when it will deliver its final recommendations to city council.
All of the select committee meetings are open for the public to attend; its second meeting is yet to be scheduled, but is set to take place following next week's B.C. Natural Resources Forum.
“It’s important for the community to know this committee is committed to trying to do something within our community and specifically in the downtown area and that is important,” says Hall.
