Downtown Vancouver BIA launches public safety campaign ahead of B.C. election

The business association for the downtown core is calling on parties running candidates in the upcoming provincial election to lay out their visions for improving public safety in Vancouver.

Downtown Van launched a social media campaign called “Better Safe Than Sorry” on Tuesday and says it hopes to highlight the serious issues of public safety and street disorder as voters consider their options over the next few weeks.

"Our members have been struggling with significant challenges related to community safety downtown,” said Downtown Van CEO Jane Talbot. “Whether that's theft, property damage, employee retention, customers not feeling safe – it's taking a toll. The status quo is not working and it needs to stop."

She said high-profile random violence, including a Sept. 4 attack that left one man dead and another with a severed hand, can deter members of the public from venturing downtown.

The attack began near the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, which is right across the street from a JJ Bean coffee shop which was open at the time.

The suspect did not enter the store, but could have.

"It is a scary thing. I mean those kind of people will duck into a store to evade police,” JJ Bean CEO John Neates. “It's just not fair...the average age of our staff is about 22 or so."

Neates recently closed a café at the Woodward’s Building due to rising street disorder and frequent acts of vandalism that left some staff afraid to go to work. He plans to evaluate the future of other Vancouver locations as their leases come up for renewal.

"It's better today than it was last year but still nowhere near as good as it was in 2019,” Neates said.

At a news conference after the Sept. 4 attack, Vancouver Police Chief Const. Adam Palmer said crime across the city is down through the first six months of 2024 compared to 2023.

That’s cold comfort to downtown business owners who say they are frequent targets of vandalism, theft and other nuisance crimes – often committed by the same people.

“We’re calling on all parties to ensure that community safety downtown is a key tenet of their platforms,” said Talbot. “We’re looking for a holistic approach.”

Downtown Van would like to see more funding for mental health, a strategy to address repeat offenders and more money ear-marked for an increase in law enforcement.