Delving into community safety, crime trends on the rise, clearance rates, efforts to combat crime and hearing community concerns will be the focus of a town hall event this Thursday, Nov. 7, says Cobourg Police Service Chief Paul VandeGraaf.
Doors will open at 6 p.m. at the Lions Community Centre for the town hall event hosted by the service, with the formal presentation component kicking off at about 6:30 p.m.
However, the big focus will be the community piece and connecting – which means hearing from residents, answering their questions and speaking to work underway to address crime trends and concerns, explains VandeGraaf.
Whether people are wanting to learn more about the data around the crime severity index – including a rise in violent and non-violent crime – and what that means, or the police budget, it’s all on the table.
VandeGraaf tells us more.
VandeGraaf anticipates the formal presentation to wrap within a half-hour to 45 minutes. He says the bulk of this presentation will be dedicated to drilling down on the crime severity index, trends occurring in the community, and how police are responding.
“What that means is that there is more of that crime occurring across Canada and Cobourg is aligning very similar to that,” explains the chief.
Similarly, under non-violent crime, there has been an increase, in addition to a “dip” in clearance rates, notes VandeGraaf.
VandeGraaf also anticipates questions related to the encampment and shelter services – and while acknowledging the current holding pattern in the community – he did say he hopes to be able to talk about some of the work that’s been happening in the background.
After the presentation, the remainder of the meeting will be dedicated like an “open mic.” Residents who don’t want to stand up at the mic will also be able to submit questions at the meeting.
The meeting is slated to run until about 8:30 p.m. The Lions’ centre is located at 157 Elgin St. E. There will be light refreshments provided.
In the words of a police spokesperson, the hope is the meeting will also help generate discussions and feedback that the service can reflect on and help identify areas for police to take meaningful action.
(Written by: Sarah Hyatt)
