Edmonton’s Chinatown once again calling for safety
Posted January 7, 2025 4:02 pm.
Last Updated January 7, 2025 5:50 pm.
At a nearby bakery, people have to hit a buzzer to get through the front door during business hours. Multiple business owners CityNews spoke with say they don’t feel safe in their community.
“We open only for customers that they’re coming really to do business,” said Akram Hasni, the co-owner of Macarons and Goodies French Bakery.
Macarons and Goodies French Bakery has been in Chinatown for nine years. The owner tells CityNews that in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, he noticed a growth of crime and disorder in the area, and decided to hire security.
“A lot of people that walk here are not welcome because they’re not here for business basically they’re here only to disturb others. Some of them are under drugs and I don’t want to deal with people that are under drugs,” said Hasni.
Shirley Tang, a baker at Hong Kong Bakery says, “All staff are scared. Scared that the homeless come in because sometimes they sleep at the front door and block the door. They bang on the window, they hit the window.”
Hong Kong Bakery is located across the street from the Italian Bakery that recently closed. The owner says that due to changes in the neighbourhood, one worker says while they keep the doors unlocked, the staff often have to give free food so they stay out of trouble.
“You’re supposed to give me the food, I paid already. You don’t want them to do something like punch or anything so I just give them the food and they go. No security, no police. [We] feel scared, that’s it. Nobody helps!” explained Tang.
Another Chinatown business owner who wants to stay anonymous says, “Sometime last year, I stopped at that intersection waiting for the light. One lady punched me. For me, I don’t feel safe.”
Chinatown has a long history of issues related to crime, addictions, and mental health, with a concentration of social support in the area.
“We ask to decentralize these services. Edmonton is big, why they always concentrate them in Chinatown?” asked the business owner.
In 2022, following the homicide of two men from the community, killed in an unprovoked attack, the City increased the number of police and peace officers in Chinatown. That pilot project ended in December.
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“Having very large emergency shelters concentrated in this area do contribute only in the sense of how they’re operated. These centres are not open 24/7 so there’s a portion of the day where people who are staying at emergency shelters have nowhere to be, so they do end up in public spaces, and that creates tension with businesses, so that’s where we need to see solutions,” said Anne Stevenson, the councillor of Ward O-day’min.
Edmonton police told CityNews they continue to work with central Edmonton communities, including the Chinatown area, through the community safety teams to keep the neighbourhood safe, saying they have seen a decrease in reported crime in areas they target for patrol. But community leaders, want to see more.
“We’re asking the EPS to be increasing patrols in the area. We have to lobby and advocate through the city and also through the Alberta government that we do need more law enforcement in the area,” said Sandy Pon, the co-founder and chair of Chinatown Transformation Collaborative Society.
Despite all these concerns, business owners like Hasni seem to be hopeful that something will soon change.
“I’m not giving up this location. I decided to stay here and fight to keep the downtown you know viable,” said Hasni.
