The City of PG working on health and safety improvements

The City of Prince George is announcing a series of changes meant to improve the health and safety of the community, with a specific focus on the downtown area.

Changes coming as apart of the Downtown Safe, Clean, and Inclusive services include:

• An increase of policing services including a two-member daily patrol downtown
• An increase from two to four Bylaw Services staff dedicated to the downtown
• Contracted security to monitoring downtown civic facilities.
• Renewed funding for the two downtown homeless service hubs that provide washrooms, storage, and other critical services
• Improved lighting, security, and daily cleaning at the 2nd Avenue parkade. The 5th Avenue parkade and the Canada Games Plaza also have security and improved lighting.
• Additional staff and equipment in Public Works to manage marginalized camps and deal with downtown cleanup service requests

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the City has also started some new initiatives including:

• Fire and Rescue Service alley patrols in the evening, from 1st Avenue to 6th Avenue and from Victoria Street to lower Patricia Boulevard.
• Expanding the service hours of the Downtown Clean Team in collaboration with the Prince George Brain Injured Group.
• Contracting POUNDS Project Society to provide free graffiti removal for downtown businesses through the summer
• The installation of additional litter containers in the downtown area

Finally, the City of Prince George is also working on other projects such as:

• The integrated health and housing facility for 1st Avenue
• Derelict building removal
• A dedicated RCMP Downtown Unit
• Discarded needle retrieval and needle drop boxes
• A new downtown pool, with construction set for later this year
• Relocating the Prince George Farmers Market at 3rd and Quebec
• A new entrance for the Bob Harkins branch of the Prince George Public Library

A complete list of changes can be found online.

Residents within city limits can contact the City anytime for issues such as needle pick-up by dialing 311.