Spring Garden Road in Halifax’s downtown core is a popular spot for food and entertainment, but it’s also become riddled with unflattering problems. “We’ve strived very hard working with the development community to establish this as a 15-minute residential neighborhood where you can live, work, shop and play. It becomes undesirable if somebody openly has drug use or a mental health episode while you’re in your community at 8:30 in the morning,” says Sue Uteck, executive director of the Spring Garden Area Business Association. Uteck says there’s also been a rise in panhandling. “Theft is up. We know that between 2023 and 2025, retail theft alone in this area in the downtown was up 61 per cent. So that tells you right there that we have a problem,” she says. Lezlie Oler, owner of In A Box, has been feeling the brunt of this issue. “I think it frightens people. I think people who are used to seeing individuals sitting on the street perhaps have a misinterpretation of what their intention is,” says Oler. “We are concerned about people coming into our shops and not being respectful of the things on the racks, not being respectful of things on shelving. I’ve had a number of people come into the store (who) clearly are not shoppers.” Uteck says she’s been advocating to get foot patrol officers in the area for years. “We are getting dedicated foot patrol officers in the area beginning in July. The community’s had enough, the retailers had enough,” she says. Oler believes it will have a positive impact in mitigating crime in the area. “There’s no doubt that having officers present would be a dissuasion from people who are intending to rob a store because the police would be closer and the call to action will take less time,” she says. “The resolution we need is proper housing for people, proper jobs for people. “People aren’t on the streets because they choose to be. People are on the streets because they have no choice. So, a little bit of empathy goes a long way.” For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
