As the city’s downtown crime rate has risen, some concerned residents are inviting Mayor Laura Cabott or city council members to a “field trip” to the alley behind the Stratford Motel. 

The Yukon Star has obtained an email to council noting the parking areas at 408 Wood St. and at Connective’s Housing First residence at Wood Street and Fifth Avenue have seen more intoxicated people. That has made the area unsafe for the people who live there, the email says. 

The Wood Street Centre, a school, is directly across the street from the problem area.

The email mentions the outreach vans visit the site daily, dispensing materials for consumption. Then, clients immediately gather to inject or smoke. 

“During the past week, I have requested police attention to the matter and advised paramedics to attend to a user in distress,” the email reads.

“Police asserted a lack of authority to address the issue unless the proprietors of 408 Wood Street and Connective request assistance. Police observed several users gathered at 408 Wood Street, ordered them to leave; the trespassers returned moments after police departed.”

The Star has contacted the writer of the email, who asked to remain anonymous. 

“Now I’m just so desensitized to him showing up. It’s almost like every time I look out the window, that truck is there,” he said. 

The person mentioned the problems severely worsened after the Housing First establishment was built. 

“They (Housing First) had to be prepared for this; the government stated when they opened it that alcohol and drug use would be prohibited,” said the concerned citizen. 

He suggested more police officers should be put on patrol in the area, as every day, there will be close to 10 people gathered there. 

The individual was trying to speak with Housing First when he was assaulted with bear spray by drug users back in October 2023. He hasn’t seen things change for the better since then. 

Councillor Kirk Cameron, a mayoral candidate, described the downtown location as “the latest hot spot in the continued growth of crime in our city.” 

Based on the statistics the Yukon government and the RCMP have made public, he acknowledged in an email, the crime rate has increased. 

By spending time walking the streets and alleys, Cameron said, he can see how crime continues to grow. There are now areas on both private and public lands that are being abused by criminals and more illegal activity in the city, he said. 

“We have people in our community who need our support and help, who, for a wide range of reasons, are the vulnerable (to drugs, alcohol, and the impacts of history, notably residential schools and marginalization by the colonial state),” said Cameron.

“So, the issue here is not the people who need help, but the sophisticated predators who, without any hesitation, prey on our vulnerable.” 

All levels of government and NGOs have set up facilities to help those people, he added, but the system for helping and healing has been thwarted by the criminal element. 

As a former justice of the peace, Cameron believes the RCMP and the courts are doing their best to improve the situation. He said he understands that judges will treat all accused persons carefully. 

“The tests that judges must bring to their work are far more complex than ever, and there is always the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that must be respected and followed first and foremost,” Cameron pointed out. 

He believes the community must find a way to deal with this criminal activity, and needs the support from both governments and residents. 

The city doesn’t have the jurisdiction to deal with the root issue – the illegal drug activity, as the criminal issues are not within the city’s mandate, he pointed out. Criminal Code matters fall to Canada, the RCMP and the Yukon government. 

Cameron also doesn’t think it’s necessary to create the city’s own police force. More can be done by collaborating with the RCMP and YG, he believes, and more communication needs to happen among all levels of government. 

“A few more flower pots on Alexander Street will do nothing to curb the crime that is underlying the crisis we face,” he said.

“The folks with the ‘horsepower’ need to drive change, but it is ultimately necessary for those in power to step up in dialogue with the city, First Nation governments and residents of the downtown to achieve the ultimate goal of a safer, quality community. It’s the strength of the community that will find a path to a solution.”

As for the invitation to tour the downtown area and stay at the Stratford Motel, he said “I don’t have to,” as he lives a few blocks away. He walks the area from Wood Street to the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter frequently – and has reported often to the RCMP when he’s seen suspicious behaviour. 
Coun. Mellisa Murray, another mayoral candidate, advised the Star she had no comment on the situation.