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Saskatoon, the fastest-growing city in Saskatchewan, sees its fair share of crime. And with 15 reported homicides in 2024, the many new faces among its leadership are tasked with bringing rising crime to heel.
“We heard pretty loud and clear from residents that they are concerned about safety,” said Mayor Cynthia Block. “What we are doing isn’t working. The problem is accelerating.”Saskatoon’s police chief Cameron McBride says the task of lowering crime is made more complex by existing social issues.“We saw reduction in reported property crime, but we saw an increase in reported violent crime,” says McBride, “When we look at, again, raw data, social disorder is driving a lot of our workload.”Earlier this year, Saskatoon added $8.5 million to the police budget and created an intimate partner violence team to combat rising social crime like domestic violence. However, Mayor Block says enforcement can’t address every issue.
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“We know that that’s the expectation of our residents at this time, even though I think we need a lot more than that. If we’re truly trying to have a safe community, that perhaps doesn’t always require those same types of policing resources. And by that I mean homelessness.”Block says crime will continue to be a problem as long as poverty is, too.
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“Unless or until we get people off the streets and into safe housing, we will continue to struggle,” says Block. “I have pledged to make this my number one issue. I’ve heard from each member of council who have also underscored that this is the main priority of our council.”
However, McBride says the biggest threat to public safety remains violent offenders.“We really believe that there are violent offenders in our community who are wanted, who need to be arrested and immersed in the justice system. And so, getting those individuals arrested is a high priority for us.”McBride feels police are fully supported by the city and hopes the city will feel the same about police in 2025.“Ensuring that the community feels like they can report crime and that those reports are not pointless,” says McBride, “because the only way we can respond effectively is if we have a really, really clear understanding of what’s happening in the community.” Only time will tell if Saskatoon’s approach to lowering crime by addressing social issues is effective, but officials at city hall and within police are optimistic 2025 will be a pivotal year.
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