New security action plan adopted

BY REBECCA BRAYTON

It’s ‘Safety First’ from now on in Pierrefonds/Roxboro.

The borough has teamed up with the West Island YMCA in implementing an urban security action plan for its residents. With the aim of crime prevention and promoting a stronger sense of security in the community, borough council adopted the plan Monday after more than two years of planning.

“The YMCA helped put the program on its wheels,” said Gerald Robertson, director of the culture, sports, recreation and social development department.

By localizing community services in key spots of the borough, the plan aims to make these services easily available for the area’s residents and families, Robertson said.

The program is targeting different groups, such as families, youth, women, the elderly and the general community. For women, one step being taken is the promotion of the ‘Between the Stops’ service, offered by the Société de Transport de Montréal (STM), which allows female bus passengers traveling alone to get off the bus between regular stops.

As there are many programs already in place that are reaching out to the borough’s youth — such as the Maison-des-jeunes

A-Ma-Baie, and Pierrefonds — the plan will work with such groups in addition to other strategies, like building a legal graffiti wall in the area.

Robertson said at first the borough was reticent to team up with religious groups for this project. “You can never be sure if it will turn out to be a sect, or some kind of extremist group,” he said. But after having trouble finding people to work in some problem areas, he says the borough re-examined this wariness. “These groups are reaching out to the kids in a way we can’t,” Robertson said. “They’re getting the job done.”

“There is a real revival going on, especially in Cloverdale,” added Robertson, which he explains is very important, as that area is in great need of revitalization.

“We’ve got a long way to go,” he continued, “but it’s coming around.”?