Why enforcement sweeps are unlikely to fix Calgary’s downtown disorder

In recent months, Calgary police have carried out three day-long safety blitzes, parading out dozens of officers to flood an area with their increased presence — at least, temporarily.

The goal? To reduce crime and nuisance behaviour, both in perception and actuality.

But despite the show of force, and the time and resources behind it, experts and police alike say these sweeps will not fully solve issues of rising disorder. 

And analysts suggest some practices, like clearing encampments, could make the problem worse. 

The first blitz, Operation Order, happened Nov. 5 throughout the downtown core, at a time when violence there was at a six-year high, according to city statistics.

Two more single-day blitzes would follow: Operation Jingle All the Way in December, which focused on the south leg of the CTrain line, and the second Operation Order in February. 

Over these three days, the Calgary Police Service (CPS) says they handled 546 situations, laid 76 charges against dozens of people, executed 426 warrants, and made 317 referrals to social service agencies. 

Officers also cleared away 13 encampments, where people may have set up any number of tents clustered together.

Those types of encampments can sometimes draw the ire of residents living or working nearby. In many cities, police or city crews will step in to dismantle them.

Researcher Kanna Hayashi calls it forced displacement. 

“Those practices are so, so counter-productive, that the public safety issues that they try to address, it actually gets worse,” she said.  

She’s part of a team at Simon Fraser University that looked into the lasting impacts on unhoused British Columbians who use drugs when their encampments are cleared or their belongings confiscated. 

They found short-term harms, like an increased risk of overdose.

But there were also longer-term concerns, like more distrust of public services. Hayashi says those individuals may be less likely to seek help, and could engage in riskier behaviour to survive.