As crime rates soar in Lethbridge and businesses feel the effects, a group has emerged with the goal of restoring Lethbridge to a safer time.
The Watch is an organization founded in 2019 designed to help people feel safe in Lethbridge’s downtown core.
The program currently has 31 workers split into 6 team leaders and 25 volunteers.
Sean Middleton is a senior team leader with the group and he has been there for a year and a half.
He says the Watch is always looking for more volunteers and their goal is 75 people, though safety concerns are often raised by many interested in joining them.
“A lot of people contact [us] about volunteering and one of the concerns they have is just feeling safe downtown,” said Middleton.
However, he says people don’t need to have these concerns.
“We’re always in groups of two. Most people I’ve met downtown don’t mean [harm]. It’s usually a pretty safe thing to do,” said Middleton.
Even with the Watch working downtown, there are still several workers who feel as though more needs to be done.
Shay Hill has worked downtown for nearly 15 years and he is now a manager at B.O.B. Headquarters.
Although he supports the Watch, he wants to see a greater police presence in the area.
“I’ve definitely noticed how it’s gotten a lot more dangerous and unpredictable over the years,” said Hill.
He says the alley behind his business is a big concern for both himself and his employees since it is where they park their vehicles.
“You can call the Watch and they will come meet you here to walk you safely to your vehicle,” said Hill.
This is where Hill finds the Watch at it’s most effective.
“I think people need to take advantage of [the Watch] more,” said Hill.
The long-time employee in Lethbridge’s downtown also says the Watch will break up large groups of people who would otherwise scare off customers.
“If they come around and there is a group of [people loitering], they’ll disperse,” said Hill.
Even though Hill understands the limits in which the Watch can operate, Middleton says many business owners expect more than they can offer.
He says people need to understand the role of the Watch when they are deciding who to contact if a problem comes up.
“We get a lot of phone calls from business owners who are very frustrated with the downtown population. We are a non-enforcement-based organization,” said Middleton.
He says volunteers with the Watch are not police officers and certain issues should be brought up to the Lethbridge Police Service rather than the Watch.
However, nearly four years after the Watch first formed, local businesses are yearning for greater results from the volunteer program.
Stjepan Smiljanec is the general manger at King of Trade, where he has been for 22 years.
He says the Watch has helped in many ways, but the downtown still needs more support from the police.
“They do a lot of assistance with overdoses or if you need a walk to your car because you don’t feel safe in the downtown core. But as for moving people along, that does not happen,” said Smiljanec.
The long-time employee also says the problems have increased in recent years, despite the Watch being introduced.
“We’ve had to lock the store down,” said Smiljanec.
He does not want to pass blame around though.
Even though he says he would love to see more done to fix the issues plaguing his store, he believes there really isn’t a clear path forward.
“[The city] is in a tough spot. It’s really hard to do more when there is no solution,” said Smiljanec.
According to Lethbridge News Now in a report on Lethbridge’s crime rating by David Opinko on Aug. 2, 2022, Lethbridge sits atop the nation’s cities for its crime rate.
“The CSI score for Lethbridge in 2021 was 128.7, which is the highest score out of the 35 census metropolitan areas listed.”
The report goes on to say how Lethbridge has topped the crime score index for three straight years, 2019-2021.
Coincidentally, that falls within the years the Watch has operated in Lethbridge.
The 2022 CSI index has yet to be released, but with major crimes such as two bank robberies within a month, the city’s outlook may be bleak.
This isn’t to say the Watch has been ineffective, but it shows a potential need for greater effort from law enforcement.
However, Hill, Smiljanec and Middleton all believe people should still shop downtown to support local businesses and bring in a fresh air that is more positive than the current one.
“Absolutely still come downtown. For us at the King of Trade, we have a good presence and keep our storefront welcoming,” said Smiljanec.
Similarly, Hill says his store is always ready to welcome in new customers, but he still wants to see more uniformed police officers.
“I think people should definitely still shop downtown but I do think there needs to be more police present,” said Hill.
Not everyone believes the Watch is good though.
In 2020, a change.org petition was created to defund the Watch.
This petition claims there is racism and bad intentions seeping from the organization.
According to the petition, the Watch was solely created to make white people feel safe downtown.
“The Watch was introduced to comfort white people at the cost of ignoring our unhoused population and increasing the harassment that they face daily. It is a manifestation of white supremacy, ongoing colonialism, and racist discrimination.”
These allegations were dismissed by Smiljanec, who says he has only ever had pleasant exchanges with members of the Watch.
“I wouldn’t say there is racism in the Watch. I watch them all the time, they walk up to everyone and talk to them. I don’t think there’s racism there,” said Smiljanec.
However, one of the nearly 6,000 signees of the petition, a change.org user by the name of Pamela Vera, says the Watch is indeed racist.
“I’m signing because this program is disgraceful and more evidence of racism in Lethbridge. It empowers people who are already racist to see others as a threat to be controlled. The millions of dollars going into this program would be better spent on programs that assist people in need,” said the user.
Middleton has also refuted these claims.
“We work really hard to try and disprove [those allegations] and show the public that’s not what we do. We’re actually just trying to help people,” said Middleton.
Despite the allegations, the Watch received an award for their work in 2022.
According to Global News in an article about the award published by Quinn Campbell on June 30, 2023, the Watch was recognized for their dedication to the community.
“The Watch and its volunteers were recognized provincially by receiving the 2022 Community Justice Award. They were nominated in the partnership and engagement division.”
Middleton says the members of the Watch want to do nothing but help people and give back to the community.
“They just saw people on the streets in Lethbridge so many times and they just wanted to get out and actually be able to help,” said Middleton.
Just like Hill and Smiljanec, Middleton hopes to see even more people use the downtown core in the future.
“I get community members stopping me all the time thanking us for what we’ve done, how we’ve helped make them feel safer,” said Middleton.
He says if people are interested in joining the Watch, they can call 403-715-9255 or 403-330-5220.
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