THUNDER BAY — Tenants of a senior citizens' apartment building on North May Street are welcoming security patrols that have now been implemented in the complex.
Spokesperson Linda Gambee said she learned about the new patrols two days after she led a rally outside Paterson Court protesting against drug-trafficking in the 10-storey, 111-unit building.
The District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board confirmed it has hired a private firm to do walk-throughs each evening and once after midnight.
"For the most part, the tenants are really quite happy that we actually have security, with some comments like they should be here more often, or longer, or at different times, especially in the mornings because that's when we find people sleeping in our hallways and things like that," Gambee said.
"It's a baby step, right. We did get security. We're very grateful to housing to be able to provide something in the way of helping us . . . We'll probably be pushing for a bit more."
On the day of the rally last week, DSSAB disputed some of the allegations Gambee made about conditions in the building, but said "We share the tenants' concerns about the two very serious incidents that were reported to police, and security actions have been taken at this property."
In one incident earlier this month, Thunder Bay Police used a stun gun to subdue an armed man, and charged him with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
A tenant reported that she feared for her life.
"I was so scared. My apartment was close by. Thank God I had the keys. I thought that knife was gonna come in my back any second. I ran into my apartment and called 911," she said.
DSSAB spokesperson Ken Ranta said Monday that the board has contractual agreements for security patrols in some of its properties but until recently Paterson Court has not been a high concern.
"It's usually been a very quiet property . . . People there had expressed a concern that they would like to see some security presence, so we were able to quickly respond, and adjust some of our patrols to include Paterson Court."
Ranta said there's no termination date for these patrols – which started Friday – and that DSSAB will reevaluate the situation as needed.
He added that he understands DSSAB administration plans a followup meeting with tenants to get more feedback and answer any questions.
Gambee said the tenants would like to meet to sort out some discrepancies between the social services board's and the tenants' assessment of conditions in the building.
