With a little help from friends and neighbours, police are celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Report A Drug House Program.
Since police launched the drug-bust program, more than 1,000 complaints have been called in, including 50 that led to evictions and nine condemned houses.
One of those busts included the property of owner and landlord Connie John, who was unknowingly renting to alleged drug dealers.
“I didn’t believe it at first,” she said. “They showed me pictures of known people in the drug community (by the house.) I was shocked.”
She said having to remove the tenant, a mother of two, was difficult for her, being a single mother herself.
“When we were in the arbitration, we cried,” Jones said, referring to the decision to have the tenant removed. “It’s hard because she had young kids.”
Const. Ron Smithman, one of the officers involved in the program, said he’s seen a noticeable improvement with the situation since October.
“I’ve visibly noticed a difference in their neighbourhoods,” he said. “They don’t have this fear in their community that something will happen.”
Police say some indicators for residents to spot drug homes could include seeing high volumes of traffic, witnessing packages or cash exchanged at the door, unusual amounts of garbage piled up, strong odours or blacked out windows.
If people are aware of a potential drug house, they’re told to call 429-8229.
