‘This is becoming a major issue’: city to address growing concern of gun violence

CALGARY (660 NEWS) – The City of Calgary will soon look at a way to help tackle an increase in gun violence.

Mayor Naheed Nenshi and Councillor George Chahal have come up with a motion to create a Public Safety Task Force to address concerns over guns and gangs.

Chahal said while Calgary remains a safe city, the task force can make it better.

“The police service is doing a tremendous job to deal with this issue, but we need to do more,” the Ward five councillor told CityNews.

Chahal added that the task force would work alongside what is already being done by Calgary police.

“Part of this task force is to identify the gaps that we have in our current programming and what we need to do better moving forward and that’s why we need to engage our schools and community stakeholders as we go through this process.”

In a statement, Nenshi said, “The safety of Calgarians is the first priority in any action we take, and championing this task force makes that clear. With our community partners at the table, I believe that we can find real solutions to reducing violence and returning the feeling of safety that makes Calgary such a great place to live.”

Meanwhile, another councillor, Jeff Davison, tweeted he wasn’t a fan of the whole thing.

Public safety is Council's first priority. I stand in support of our Chief and the Calgary Police Commission who are actively working for the betterment of public safety for all Calgarians.

A task force is another layer of bureaucracy that isn't needed.#yyc #yyccc #Calgary https://t.co/25RZyOjmGA

— Jeff Davison (@JeffDavisonYYC) January 20, 2020

Earlier this month, the Calgary Police Service introduced a new inspector position specifically designed to address issues of violent crime after two fatal shootings at the beginning of the year and several others at the end of December.

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Police also introduced a program through YouthLink last summer that aimed to reduce the number of kids caught up in gangs, especially in the northeast.

In a statement to CityNews, the Calgary Police Service said the support is appreciated.

We look forward to being an active partner in the development of this initiative and are grateful for the community support. Gun and gang violence are complex community issues that cannot be solved in isolation. It will take a comprehensive solution to address the underlying causes that are driving gun and gang violence in our community. It’s important to keep in mind not all of the shootings in our city are gang-related. Some are related to domestic violence and some are drug-related. We look forward to conversations about how we can work together with our community partners to address this complex issue.

Chahal, who represents many areas of the northeast affected by gun violence said this has become a growing, city-wide issue.

“When we see an increase from 47 in 2018 to close to 90 (shootings) in 2019, it shows that this is becoming a major issue and Calgarians are becoming concerned.”

“The safety of Calgarians is the first priority in any action we take, and championing this task force makes that clear. With our community partners at the table, I believe that we can find real solutions to reducing violence and returning the feeling of safety that makes Calgary such a great place to live.” Mayor Nenshi told CityNews in a statement.

The motion to introduce the task force will go before the Priorities and Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday.

With files from CityNews.