OC Transpo riders might soon face a fare increase and service cuts. (Jean-Sebastien Marier/offCentre)

The City of Ottawa needs to make cuts to balance its budget and OC Transpo riders may have to take a hike.

Passengers could see a fare increase of 7.5 per cent under a new budget to be tabled to city council next week. Friday, the city’s audit, budget and finance committee recommended changes to the transit committee’s 2010 budget draft.

The proposal contradicts an earlier transit committee decision to limit the fare increase for 2010 to 3.5 per cent.

Many transit users are unhappy with the news.

‘‘They are raising the bus fare and they continue doing it, but the service doesn’t change. The service gets worse,’’ said Ottawa resident Mandy Parnell.

Service frequency is also likely to suffer and service enhancements could be put on hold. Even the new winter service, which took effect last Saturday, might be short lived. Indeed, the audit, budget and finance committee recommends to city council to ‘‘maintain November 2009 service levels.’’

The projected fare increase could occur as early as March 2010 instead of July 1, the date originally proposed by the transit committee. Details regarding how bus and O-Train tickets, cash fare, and monthly passes would be respectively affected are unknown for the moment.

On Tuesday morning, Parnell and her husband Cristopher Sauve were waiting for the bus with their daughter at the corner of Somerset and Preston. Although they own a car, they are regular users of Ottawa’s transit system.

‘‘I own a vehicle, (but) I take the bus because the price of gas is just as much as the bus. I take the bus usually up to the bank, to the grocery store, so I don’t have to use the vehicle,’’ said Sauve, a former OC Transpo employee now working in construction.

Parnell is a stay-at-home mother, so public transit is useful when she needs to do errands with their young daughter. ‘‘Whenever I have to go out, I’m on the bus,’’ she said.

The proposed fare increase is unlikely to change the couple’s daily routine, but others are worried since they feel that fares are already too high.

‘‘I take the bus often, but it’s too expansive,’’ said Fowzia Ismiel, standing at a bus stop on Somerset Street West. She does not have a car, she explained, so transit is the only option she has to travel around the city.

Currently, city taxes account for 52 per cent of OC Transpo’s budget while fares bring in the extra 48 per cent, said a city spokesperson in a phone interview.

The proposed fare increase is part of a three-year plan to reach the council-mandated equal cost sharing between transit passengers and taxpayers. ‘‘What they (the audit, budget and finance committee) are trying to do is reach 50/50,’’ said the same spokesperson.

In addition to the fare increase and service cuts, members of the audit, budget and finance committee hope to tackle administrative fees and maintenance costs. The city’s transit budget, contemplates the deferral of funding for the post secondary student pass (U-Pass). The combined measures could save about $16.1 million to the city.

But nothing is set in stone yet. The City of Ottawa will conduct public consultations on the city’s budget in December and January. City council will debate the city’s financial plan and take its final decision starting Jan. 25, 2010.

Cst. Allen Percival (left) will take on the role that made Cst. Tim Senack (right) a known face in the community. (Madwar/offCentre)

Constable Tim Senack has spent the past fifteen years patrolling Hintonburg’s neighbourhoods on foot and on bicycle.  This type of grassroots, community-centred pavement pounding has helped change the face of Hintonburg.

When Senack started as a police officer, he spent several years patrolling neighbourhoods on foot. Ever since he joined the Community Police Centre in Hintonburg, he has returned to foot and bicycle patrols, which allow him to get to know community members personally.

“Maybe four years ago, five years ago, when I came over to the other centre,” said Senack, referring to the Community Centre’s earlier address, “[there were] 16 crack houses the first year. They closed up.”

“Right now, there’s a house up here that I know is selling marijuana,” Senack said, pointing out the window. “There’s a guy over here that sells a little bit of dope,” he added, pointing in the other direction.

“[Hintonburg] went from one of the most calls for service, to now it’s one of the second lowest calls for service in the city.”

Senack will retire next January after 29 years in the Ottawa Police Service.  His successor, Cst. Allen Percival, said he has big shoes to fill.

“Policing in general is community-based,” said Percival. “Not everyone will go to the police. But if Tim’s walking around, they develop a rapport.”

“You have to get the community involved,” said Senack, leaning back in his office chair.

“You can’t do it yourself.”

Carole Danis, the owner of Carole’s Barbershop on Wellington St, describes Senack as “a friendly person.”

“People have a tendency to want to talk to these people when they’re friendly,” said Danis.  “We want to open up to them when we talk to them, even though they’re the police.”

After having lived in Hintonburg for 42 years, Danis said she has seen the community take a turn for the better.

“One time I talked to a policeman,” she said, pausing to examine her customer’s hair. “Only up to about year and a half ago, there was a crack house across the street there. The cops cleaned it up. It didn’t take too long, though. If you helped them, they worked along.”

Bob Maginnis, who retired ten years ago after serving with the Ontario Provincial Police, is the Chair of the Community Policing Advisory of Ontario (CPAC). CPAC is an umbrella organization of community policing committees that was launched in the mid-1990s.

According to Maginnis, community policing has been a part of police work since its inception.

According to Maginnis, institutionalized community policing hearkens back to the nineteenth century, when then-U.K. Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel founded London’s Metropolitan Police Force in 1829.

“When Peel originally came up with policing and put civilian people in uniform to identify them as police officers, one of the most infamous statements he ever made was, ‘The police are the people and the people are the police,’” said Maginnis.

When radios were installed in police cars, community policing began to decline.

“In the late 1980s we realized that the officers had become so removed from the general public that they had lost touch with the issues that were of real concern to the community,” Maginnis wrote on the value of community policing for the CPAC website.

Some of the crime prevention programs at Ottawa’s Community Police Centres are as simple as placing notices on parked cars warning them against leaving valuables locked inside. This particular program was the brainchild of Gary Schitedoer – better known as Skate – fifteen years ago.

One of the notices ended up on Dave Brown’s car, prompting the now-retired Ottawa Citizen editor to publish an article on that program. Soon after, Senack made a new contact.

“Bad guys read papers too, I found out,” said Senack. “This guy calls me up because of the article, because my name’s there, my number’s there. He says, ‘Do you want to know who’s breaking into cars over there?’”

The informant ended up with a reward, and some time later contacted Senack again with a tip on who was behind some fraudulent ATM and credit cards that had been in the news.

“Everybody’s your eyes and ears,” said Senack. “If you didn’t have them, you wouldn’t know what was going on.”

Many community police centres in Ottawa rely on volunteers.

“The best volunteers are the seniors, because they stick with you and you’re not spending your time looking,” said Senack, listing the centre’s current volunteers, the number of years they have been with the centre and which days they come in.

According to Cst. Jean Paul Vincelette, a media spokesperson for the Ottawa Police, the service currently has 343 active volunteers in various divisions. Forty-two more are waiting in various phases of the application process.

Brenda Landry, coordinator of volunteer services with the Ottawa Police Service, said they rarely have a shortage of volunteers.

“We’re a popular place to volunteer with,” she said. “[With] most agencies it’s the other way around. And that’s just because of the type of organization that we are.”

Vincelette estimated that the official volunteer application process, which was only recently established, takes about 5-6 weeks.

“By making the process a tad more complicated we don’t have as many volunteers,” said Vincelette, “but the ones we do have are quality volunteers.”

Hintonburg's Community Police Centre was relocated to Wellington Street in 2007. According to Cst. Tim Senack, Hintonburg once had one of Ottawa's highest call rates; today, its call rates are some of the lowest in the city. (Madwar/offCentre)

Crime Prevention Ottawa has helped Hintonburg to become a safer community. (Li/offCentre)

Crime Prevention Ottawa could be the next victim of city budget cuts, and Hintonburg community leaders are speaking out.

Since its inception in 2005, Crime Prevention Ottawa (CPO) has been working to address the root causes of crime in local communities, focusing on issues like gang violence and street-level prostitution.

Since last Friday’s surprise announcement that the city may cut CPO’s budget completely, Hintonburg residents are fighting to save the program.

“We are going to work really hard to stop [shutting down of Crime Prevention Ottawa] if it can be reversed,” said Cheryl Parrott, Hintonburg Security Committee co-chair.

Parrott admitted she was sceptical of the idea of a crime prevention group when the organization was launched several years ago. But she added that she quickly changed her mind after seeing how much the office had helped make Ottawa neighbourhoods safer. Parrott said the organization has been a major force in curbing crime in Hintonburg.

CPO has also become a research body for various issues in the Hintonburg community, including prostitution and gang activity.

“If we had Crime Prevention Ottawa in the 90s, when we went through such rough times here in Hintonburg, we wouldn’t have to work nearly as hard as we did,” said Parrott. “We wouldn’t have to research what’s happening across Canada. We would have had all this information.”

The crime prevention office recently released a study about youth gang activities in Ottawa neighbourhoods. Parrott said that understanding the causes of crime is key in preventing it.

CPO has also helped fund several of Hintonburg’s community projects. Several years ago, the Hintonburg Community Association got a grant from Crime Prevention Ottawa to help support the local children’s break dance group HB Breakers. Last week, HB Breakers proved that the money was well spent when they performed in the Senate chambers on Parliament Hill.

CPO is also working to fight crack houses in Hintonburg. They are now pushing for legislation that would allow people to complain about criminal activity in their neighbourhoods. The complaint would then result into a public safety investigation, while the complainant’s name wouldn’t be released.

CPO has also been focusing on recognizing communities’ efforts to fight crime. Earlier this month, Hintonburg Security Committee received an award from the crime prevention office for creation of Ottawa’s john school, a program aimed at reducing street-level prostitution by educating men who solicit prostitutes.

“Crime Prevention Ottawa is something that is really needed, and [shutting down of the Crime Prevention Office] is going to affect everybody in the city, really,” said Wayne Rodney, another co-chair of Hintonburg Security Committee.

“If you don’t have it, you are going to have more police,” he added. City councillor Clive Doucet agrees.

“Councillor Doucet thinks shutting CPO down is a bad idea because in the long run, it will cost the city more money to fight crime without the crime prevention office,” said Pierre Johnson, a spokesman for Doucet.

Members of the audit committee that voted in favour of shutting down CPO’s could not be reached for comment.

CPO’s final fate will be determined January 25th, when City Council votes on the city’s 2010 budget.

The C4 Gallery is a display that showcases artistic work by local Ottawa residents. (Li/offCentre)

Flanked by large vending machines and half a dozen newspaper racks, the C4 Gallery is almost invisible in the Hintonburg Community Centre.

This artistic gem adds a splash of style to the otherwise drab nook near the centre’s main entrance where it is located – but the gallery won’t stay there for long.

A mobile art display, the C4 (“contemporary, conceptual, compartmental and community”) Gallery moves to a new location in Ottawa every two months.  It will remain at the Hintonburg Community Centre until Dec. 14, and is set to end in September 2010.

Sandra Mirabelli, program coordinator for Ottawa’s community arts program, said the program aims to take art out of the art gallery.

Inspired by a desire to “[get] art out to people in non-traditional venues,” Mirabelli said the gallery began as a collaborative project between the city of Ottawa’s community and public art programs. “They don’t have to go down to the City of Ottawa Art Gallery…They can see art in their own neighbourhoods.”

Mirabelli said the project is chance for local residents to express their feelings about their neighbourhood through art.

“They can create [political or social] statements about the things that are important to them,” she said, adding that both professional and amateur artists have submitted their work.
Local artist Cynthia O’Brien said she jumped at the chance to participate in the gallery.
“It sounded like a really interesting idea to have work travel in different community centres,” the vibrant 38-year-old said over the phone from her basement studio in Centretown. “I guess it was kind of like an outreach idea to get people thinking outside the gallery box, so it kind of tickled me!”

The 24 pieces in the exhibit are stored in a in a large wooden cabinet, with each piece in its own drawer. Attached to each drawer is a unique knob reflecting the multicultural faces of Ottawa’s neighbourhoods. A glass case enclosing a ceramic rendition of these communities sits atop the cabinet.
O’Brien’s piece, titled “One Beauty Spot,”  is a small circular clay sculpture, salmon pink in colour with a smattering of faded yellow on the top.
She described her piece as “a relationship of the two living organisms, which is one, being the egg and two, being the little pox on the egg,” adding that it fits well with gallery’s theme of community expression.

“Within a community of people…an organism comes in, and I just [wanted to convey]… the reaction between the host and the organism,” O’Brien said.

“I live in a community with all these other people, and I guess you live harmoniously with your neighbours and the people in your community… [But] what if something comes along that disturbs that harmony? It could be a drug problem, or the city changes something in your neighbourhood.”

The portable gallery’s array of artwork ranges from paintings to photographs, showcasing various interpretations of community.

The Cool Youth Group, a collective of artists comprised of 21 immigrant children, submitted 21 individual paintings that were miniaturized and combined onto one display by computer. Their work reflected “memories of belonging” in both Canada and in their homelands.

For 35-year-old Jason McCoy, a self-described artistic neophyte, the gallery makes art accessible.

“I’m not an arts person, but it definitely catches your attention and gets you to look at [art] in a positive way,” he said. “This was just something really, really neat, and… it’s just going to help encourage more local people to come out.”

McCoy, who is one of the program coordinators for the centre, emphasized, “I think they’re trying to really localize it, and help bring awareness to art in this community.”

McCoy said that this kind of active participation contributes to the growth of Hintonburg’s arts community.
“I’ve been living in this neighbourhood for only about 10 years… and arts was maybe in its infancy [when I first arrived],” he said. “Now, in 10 years, it’s become a well-known area for the arts.”

O’Brien also shares McCoy’s enthusiasm for the gallery’s effect on the local community.

“You see work made by people in your community…We’re all mixed in that [cabinet] together, we’re all considered on the same level and we’re all equal,” she said.

O’Brien said she hopes the gallery will attract observers as well as new artists.

“Everybody in the community can look in the [cabinet] and go, ‘Hey! I can do this too.’”

After leaving this location, the C4 Gallery will travel to the following locations:

- Shenkman Arts Centre (mid-January to mid-March)

- Goulbourn Recreation Complex (end of March to May)

- Greenboro Community Centre (June to August)

- Hintonburg Community Centre (August to September)

Local residents keen to trying their hand at art can make submissions for the gallery’s next exhibit. The city will showcase the work of a “new batch of 24 artists” in the New Year.

Christina Ballhorn is busily crocheting, trying to replace some of her sold stock at Sunday’s Idle Hands craft sale. (Skura/offCentre)

Despite another tough year for the economy, Ottawa crafters are optimistic about the upcoming Christmas season. And if last weekend’s busy Idle Hands craft show was any indication, they have reason to be excited.

Customers packed the Patrick Gordon Framing Studio on Sunday, where almost 30 local crafters and artists stood behind tables, eagerly showing off their one-of-a-kind items.

Sarah Hallman has been making and selling stained glass necklaces, ornaments and other items for the past seven years. She says that her sales for the last few seasons have not been any lower than usual – but added that she probably would not be as happy with her profits if this was her only job.

“Because I have a part-time job,” said Hallman, “it doesn’t feel like it’s hard to make money. I’m actually taking all the money I make at art shows to put a down payment on a house.”

At the next table, Tali, a petite mother of two who asked that her last name not be used for personal reasons, agreed that the season looks promising. Tali said there is a market for crafts in Ottawa that does not seem to have been affected by the economic downturn.

“I think people are really looking for something that’s not from China,” she said. “I think people are looking for things that are different, and I think people are tired of spending a ton of money at the Gap and buying things you could buy anywhere across the country.”

Products that are made by hand tend to cost more than the items you would normally find in a department store. Jennifer Stone, a local artist and the organizer of Idle Hands, said that this is why more of these shows are needed.

“It’s hard for people who craft, or artists, because when you’re selling things through someone else they take 50 per cent and not everybody wants to pay a fair price for handmade work,” said Stone. “This is good because I just charge the vendors a price per table and then they keep 100 per cent of their profits.”

Being able to sell their own products is particularly important for people who craft as their full-time job.

“It’s a fun way to try and make a living,” laughs Christina Ballhorn, who has her own company called Loot by Stina B. She also co-owns the Workshop Studio & Boutique, which showcases work from local artists.

She says that Ottawa seems to have a really supportive community of artists, even more than in cities like Montreal and Toronto where competition is more intense.

“Because Ottawa is sort of seen as a bit of a stuffy city, a government town, people [in the arts] really need to support each other.”

Ballhorn says that her business was not affected by the poor economy or even the bus strike last season. Although business has been quieter this year, Ballhorn says she’s sure things will pick up once snow starts piling on the ground.

The Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods legislation (SCAN) is designed to protect neighbourhoods, like this one near Chinatown, by targeting properties that house habitual criminal activity. The bill, championed by Hintonburg's Security Committee, was killed in a committee meeting last week in Toronto. Ottawa MPP Yasir Naqvi is not giving up on his fight for SCAN. (Israel/offCentre)

By Jayme Poisson

It has been a disappointing week for Cheryl Parrott and her colleagues at the Hintonburg Security Committee. The community organization saw their bid to get legislation targeting high-crime residences squashed by opposition politicians in Toronto.

Last Wednesday, Parrott made the trip to Toronto’s Queen’s Park, teaming up with Ottawa MPP Yasir Naqvi to discuss his Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act (SCAN) with a standing committee on private members bills.

This article, published in last week’s offCentre, on the eve of the committee meeting in Toronto, discussed the merits of the bill.

Essentially, SCAN targets problem landlords and tenants using properties on a habitual basis to house illegal activities such as drug dealing, weapons, child abuse or running a common bawdy house.

The legislation would allow authorities to ban individuals from properties and even have a residence closed down for a period of 90 days.

SCAN was brought forth to Naqvi by Parrott and other concerned Hintonburg residences who were looking for extra measures to help deal with crack houses in their communities.

Coming as a surprise to both Parrott and Naqvi, the legislation, which has been enacted in other provinces- including Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Yukon-was effectively killed by opposition politicians, who filibustered using their allotted time to run out the clock.

“It was very disappointing obviously,” said Parrott in an interview, adding, “the other disconcerting thing was the rudeness we were shown by the NDP member Cheri DiNovo.”

Two other Conservative MPPs also chose to run the clock.

During last week’s committee meeting, DiNovo, who currently serves as MPP for the downtown Toronto riding of Parkdale-High Park, raised concerns that the legislation would be used by scrupulous landlords to evict tenants.

Another issue she raised was that it would give residents a way to “rat-out” neighbours without having to face them in court.

DiNovo went on to call SCAN draconian, comparing it to something one might find in Nazi Germany. She said that it throws people onto the streets, creating more homelessness.

“I think what’s of concern here is the sentiments that were expressed in those remarks, especially not so kind comments towards members of my community and what they stand for,” said Naqvi of DiNovo’s remarks, adding, “It was disheartening to see that they were shown a disrespect for their point of view, and that name calling became the order during the comments from the opposition members.”

“The whole purpose behind a legislature, going back in history, is to engage in a civil debate on issues that are important to our communities. And important issues are controversial issues, no doubt about it,” said an impassioned Naqvi. “But the way around this is to engage in discussion and find a common ground.”

Ms. DiNovo’s office declined a request for an interview.

Charles Akben-Marchand is an Ottawa resident who has concerns about SCAN.

“I’m not trying to say that the people who are pushing for SCAN, that their complaints are illegitimate,” he said. “By all means there are lots of problems in our society. I just think SCAN is a step too far in trying to solve those problems.”

He went on to say that he believes the legislation invariably muddies the water between federal and provincial jurisdictions. “The province is trying to do a back door legislation on criminal activity by claiming it’s property law,” he said.

Instead, Akben-Marchand would like to see more resources put into both policing and preventative measures to deal with the behaviors that lead to properties with habitual criminal activity.

He also believes that the legislation will add to the homeless problem, as it “seems very stacked against residents who get pushed out of the mix,” and leaves them with no place to go but the street.

Naqvi respectfully disagrees with such criticisms.

“I’m not some maverick coming along and talking about cleaning up properties,” he said.   “These are very complex problems. I totally agree with that. That’s why we need to make sure that we have support services available.”

Naqvi advocates a four-pronged approach of harm reduction, prevention, treatment and enforcement to go along with the SCAN legislation.

“We need to look at a broader purpose and a broader good and make sure that those who live in a community or neighbourhood continue to live in a safe place,” said Naqvi, adding, “We need to make sure that the very small minority who continue to engage in illegal activity and terrorize their neighbourhood are not the ones prevailing.”

Naqvi isn’t giving up on SCAN, something that Parrott is grateful for. “We’re going to re-group and move forward from here,” she said. “This legislation needs to be in Ontario. Maybe it’s not going to happen right away, but eventually Ontario will be the only province left without it.”

“I will continue to work very closely with my community, those who support it and those who oppose it, because obviously I am in obligation to all,” said Naqvi. He added that since last week he has received an incredible amount of support from the community.

While the bill is still technically alive, Naqvi said the possibility of re-introducing it before Christmas is close to zero. He did vow that he will be pursuing SCAN again in the coming new year.

“If that means I have to engage in more dialogue to address concerns and if more tinkering is needed I will for sure engage in that conversation,” he said.

A young customer enjoys a latte and a good read at Raw Sugar Cafe. (Wei/offCentre)

By Renee Wei

For some, visiting Raw Sugar Café is a chance to sit in the café’s antique chairs, dream and wonder. For others, it’s the chance to watch passersby walking down Somerset Street. But the café is quickly becoming a hub for local activists.

Nadia Kharyati, the owner of the café, spent seven years working with NGOs promoting women’s rights and sexual health. She opened the Raw Sugar Café last year because “there was need for a community space that is different, quality and involved.”

Last Saturday evening, Ottawa RebELLEs, a young feminist network based in Ottawa, hosted a fundraising event as part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign. The annual event, which aims to promote awareness of gender-based violence worldwide, chose Raw Sugar Café as one of its Ottawa venues.

According to Kharyati, this is not the first time that she offered her place to charity activities for free.

“All non-profits have limited budgets,” said Kharyati. “If they are fundraising or they are a charity, every little bit helps.”

Kharyati said she’s happy to promote activism in the city.

“It’s pretty much my way of getting back. Because I have that experience, I’m just happy to offer my place for people who are working hard for cause.”

The local community has taken notice of Kharyati’s efforts.

“Chinatown is so pleased to have Raw Sugar in the neighbourhood. It has become a social and cultural hub for this community,” said Grace Xin, the executive director of the Somerset Street Chinatown Business Improvement Area. “It brings so many people from different backgrounds together, and achieves a common goal – make the society a better and more beautiful place for everybody.”

In the small coffee shop, everyone can find a piece of their lives – from secondhand chairs and tables of all colors and shapes to homemade cookies the size of small plates and carrot cakes topped with thick layers of whipped cream.

The café  fuses western and eastern elements into an artistic and romantic atmosphere. Bamboo blinders are tucked behind white silky drapes. Red Chinese lanterns glitter beside sugar canes and angels on the new Christmas tree.

Cynthia Morris, a Carleton University student living in Chinatown, said that she likes writing in Raw Sugar Café.

“It can work … to improve concentration. The atmosphere at Raw Sugar Café keeps me busy and happy, so I feel inspired to create and concentrate.”

Notices for art shows and local activities are proudly displayed beside the menu on the coffee shop’s yellow wall.  Many customers walk straight towards that wall to know what’s going on in the neighbourhood.

Kharyati said that Raw Sugar fills the need for a social space that fosters creativity.

“The people that are here are very interesting. I was hoping they would appreciate this kind of place,” said Kharyati.  “They really embrace it. I’m very happy about that.”

Talking about Raw Sugar Café’s future, Kharyati said she wanted to keep it going the way it has been.

“I’m happy that there is a space for fundraisers and charities to hold events. But it’s also a music venue, a creative source for crafts … it’s become a little bit of everything. It’s a community in a true sense.”

Justin Golden left home at the age of 15 and turned to alcohol. Now, he’s getting his life back on track with the help of Ottawa’s Operation Come Home. (Skura/offCentre)

By Elyse Skura

For community groups in Hintonburg, preventing youth crime and gang involvement starts early.

Over the past five years, children aged six to 13 have been having fun and connecting with the community in a local hip-hop group. More recently, a breakdancing group was formed. Cheryl Parrott, the co-chair of the Hintonburg Community Association’s security committee, says the program keeps youth from getting into trouble and teaches them about community values.

“It’s important to start early,” Parrott says, “since that’s when kids are building patterns for their future lives.”

A recent report by Crime Prevention Ottawa (CPO), whose continued existence is in question after the announcement of a proposed funding cut last Friday, suggests that there need to be more programs like this in the city.

“It’s key that a young person connects somewhere positive in their life,” said Nancy Worsfold, the executive director of CPO. “When you have youngsters who are connecting nowhere positively… that’s a recipe for trouble. If they’re not connecting positively with family, with school, with community, they are at risk of connecting negatively with criminal gangs.”

That’s not to say that six-year-olds could be involved in criminal activity, said Worsfold, but if an eight-year-old student is already being suspended from school for violence, if they are already being neglected at home, and if they aren’t involved in the community, the risk is much greater that they will turn to gangs later on.

Worsfold says that CPO is currently working on issues highlighted in its November report, titled “Community Cohesion and Youth Gang Prevention in Six Priority Areas.” The group is working with communities to find out what types of programs youth are looking for, and what barriers might be keeping them from programs.

“It’s very important that we’re doing the right things at the right places,” Worsfold said. “Because these issues are very much neighbourhood based.”

In Hintonburg, Parrott says that cost is one of the most significant barriers for young people, so the Hintonburg Community Association (HCA) is making sure that children get free access to programs.

While the City of Ottawa does provide some subsidies to parents, Parrott said there are a limited number and they do not cover the full cost of programs.

“For some people it’s just very difficult to apply for a subsidy,” said Parrott. “Either pride, or language, or all of those other barriers just stand in the way. Even the hassle of having to fill out the form and then provide an income statement to prove that you’re low income is a barrier.”

Providing support for older youth

For older youth, who may already be involved in criminal activity, Parrott said there is not as much support in the community. While the Somerset West Community Health Centre has a drop-in centre where youth can talk about their problems, it is only open one day per week.

According to Parrott, the HCA would like to provide more programs for older youths, but there has not been enough funding.

“At this point, as volunteers,” she said. “We’re kind of tapped out.”

In the Byward Market, quite a distance from the Hintonburg neighbourhood, Operation Come Home (OCH) provides a wide range of programs for young adults who may be on the street or in shelters. Their drop-in program is open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Anik Young, who works in the centre, said about 50 to 60 youths come in per day.

Young says that OCH has had trouble finding funding in the past, because similar programs already exist for adults. But she says that youth might be intimidated to go to these adult organisations.

For Justin Golden, the organisation has given him a sense of community and a network of support in Ottawa. Sitting at a table in OCH’s headquarters, Golden said that once youth get into trouble, it is hard for them to break the cycle.

“You stop trying to get a job because you’re self-conscious that you don’t have clean clothes, or you don’t have food to bring for a lunch,” said 26-year-old Golden, looking down at his calloused hands.

“I was out of my house when I was fifteen, then my parents split up not long after that,” he said. “I probably went through depression, I turned to alcohol, started drinking when I was fifteen and that was how I dealt with it.”

Though Golden says he doesn’t like to “preach to the choir,” he is able to share his experiences with youth at the centre and he hopes to help them more once he’s back on track.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to do until I came to Ottawa and saw this program. This program inspired me to want to be a social service worker.”

Golden hopes to enrol in the Social Service Worker Program at Algonquin College next year.

What’s next for youth programs in Hintonburg

Although the Hintonburg Community Association does not currently have programs for older youth, there is a plan to help those who may be involved in crime or gangs. The basement of the community centre will be renovated over the next year so that older children will have a place to play sports or do their homework.

“At this point there isn’t programming dollars for it,” Parrott said. “But that will be the next step.”

In the meantime, the HCA will continue to promote other programs being run in the area, like the drop-in centre at the Somerset West Community Health Centre and the Boys and Girls Club program that runs Thursday and Friday evenings at the Adult High School.

The future of programs such as these may be in jeopardy as the City of Ottawa announced on Friday that it would completely cut Crime Prevention Ottawa’s budget.

During a recent prostitution sweep by the Ottawa police, 11 people were arrested on prostitution-related charges. Five of them were released because they qualified for the Pre-Charge Diversion “john school” program. John schools have been around in Ottawa for some time, but there are no official studies on how effective they are in fighting prostitution. OffCentre’s Evgeniya Kulgina discussed the issue with Ottawa Police sergeant Jim Elves.

John school is designed to educate men charged for soliciting prostitution (or “johns”) about the harms of prostitution.

Started in Hintonburg in 1996, the program has since become citywide. While it’s unclear how the program has impacted the community, Ottawa Police sergeant Jim Elves says the schools are needed to fight prostitution.

“We ask john school participants to fill out forms at the end of the program,” said Elves. “The results of the surveys make it very clear that the if the participants had all the information they received in john school before, they wouldn’t pick up a prostitute.”

The one-day program targets first-time offenders, as an alternative to criminal charges. To qualify, the johns must be over 18, without any criminal record, and they must also admit responsibility for soliciting prostitutes. The fee for the program is about $500. Sometimes the fee can be reduced, Elves says, but decisions about lowering the fees are made rarely and on a case-by-case basis.

While there are no studies about how effective the program is, Elyes says participants have given the program good reviews.

“On the surveys, many johns write that they found the information very enlightening and that they had no idea about the effects of prostitution,” said Elves.

Most john school students are men between 30 and 40 years old, and Ely says they come from a variety of social backgrounds.

“Some of them are on social assistance, some are qualified professionals with a degree.”

During the day at john school, the “students” are shown several sides of prostitution.

“We have a crown attorney, a public health professional, community activist, and a recovered prostitute-slash-drug dealer coming in to talk about the effects of prostitution,” said Elves.

And although there is no official research on the effect of john schools in Ottawa, Elves says the Ottawa police unofficial study shows that the recidivism rate among johns who attended the school is lower than five per cent.

However, it’s hard to draw conclusion from the police study. Frédérique Chabot, women’s outreach coordinator with the AIDS Committee of Ottawa, says that although the recidivism rate among johns after graduating from john schools is minimal, the schools are still just a drop in the ocean in the issue of fighting prostitution.

“They are only catching very small percentage of people that consume sex commercially, and then they never get on the radar again,” said Chabot.

“It doesn’t mean that [the johns] don’t do it again. It just means we haven’t caught that many ourselves,” said Elves.

Buddy and Helen Saikaly’s Melrose Groceteria may have closed its doors for the last time on Saturday, but Hintonburg residents haven’t seen the last of Helen’s cooking.

By popular demand, Helen will be putting together a cookbook of the dishes that made the couple’s convenience store a regular hangout.

“Anything she’s made, whether it was Lebanese or not, will be in that cookbook,” said the Saikalys’ daughter Dalal Larisey.

Some patrons have already requested copies.

“They’ve given us their number,” said Larisey. “They say, ‘When it’s out, please call me; I’d like one.’ I think we have about 20 of them!”

The Saikalys, who left Lebanon for Canada as newlyweds, started out with a novelty-variety shop, but converted it into a corner store soon after. Melrose became a groceteria when they added a kitchen in 1994, making dishes like tabouleh and hummus the talk of the town.

“Even though falafel was big, chicken shawarma was double that,” said Larisey of the groceteria’s signature dishes.

Over the weekend, Helen scrambled to prepare her catering service’s last orders.

“You can only do so much in that kitchen in one day,” said Larisey.

The store’s new owners will be converting it into a wood oven pizzeria, according to Larisey.

“These people could not have come at a more perfect time,” she said. “Just a couple of weeks ago, the sidewalk was completed on our side. The whole entire area has changed.”

Members of the Hintonburg community bade their farewell to the Saikalys at a party at the neighbouring Elmdale House Tavern on Friday, while others stopped by the following day for one last visit.  Watch offCentre’s video coverage here.