Stereotype gets a shake-up
Recent data released by the Ottawa Police would suggest that despite 15 years of negative media messaging about needles, crack houses and street prostitution, Hintonburg is tied for the region’s lowest rate of “calls to police”, at least within the Greenbelt. Only the adjacent civic hospital area has a similar low-call profile.
Lorrie Marlow of the Hintonburg Economic Development Committee (HEDC), long known for its community organizing around street crime issues, has a theory about why the news appears so good for safety and security in Hintonburg.
The answer may be in the collection of the data itself, Marlow contends. Rather than phoning police and having them log the call, Hintonburg residents have other “first points of contact” to channel concerns over crime to, including the HEDC and local police officers who sometimes can handle issues before they become a matter for a police report.
Despite the seemingly rosy statistics, the HEDC is still strongly encouraging residents and business owners to continue calling and filing reports on any suspicious activity, as the organization claims that statistics are vital to corrective action being taken. The recent closing of a notorious long-term crack house in the district was due, Marlow says.,to an “incredible volume of police reports” filed by neighbours complaining about continual criminal activity at that address.
