Chatham councillor says downtown safety concerns driven by social disorder, lack of immediate solutions

Concerns in Chatham’s downtown core as large homeless encampment persists, police respond. CTV Windsor’s Chris Campbell explains.

A Chatham-Kent councillor says residents are reaching a breaking point as visible social disorder grows in the downtown core, leaving the municipality struggling to respond to a problem he describes as overwhelming.

The Chatham-Kent Police Service issued a statement this week addressing concerns raised on social media about downtown Chatham, saying police investigated a recent incident and determined no criminal offences had occurred.

Police say more than 80 per cent of calls in the downtown area are related to social disorder — including homelessness, addiction and mental health crises — rather than criminal acts.

Michael Bondy says the impact on residents has been significant and sudden.

“This hasn’t been a gradual change in Chatham,” Bondy said. “In the last 18 months, it’s been an explosion. People are fearful, even during the day, and we’re just not used to that here. This isn’t downtown Toronto where your guard is always up.”

Bondy says police continue to respond to calls, but the volume and nature of incidents make long-term solutions difficult.

“The police are doing their best,” he said. “But they’re almost in containment mode. There’s so many fires going on, literally from time to time, that the police, they can’t prevent this. They’re not outnumbered, but they just can’t stay on top of what’s going on.”

Bondy says council’s ability to act is limited by funding and timelines, noting that solutions such as shelters and supportive housing require years to build and millions of dollars in investment.

“In the immediate future, there’s not much we can do unfortunately, just sort of manage it the best we can,” he said, adding he believes council is now in a planning or regrouping phase. “I agree we’re not doing enough — but we don’t yet know how to deal with something that hit us this fast.”

“We need a new plan,” Bondy continued. “You can throw all the money in the world. That’s not going to solve it. We have to come up with a new plan on how to get people help. It’s not arrest them and throw them in jail. Although that is probably somewhat effective, but then they’ll just be replaced. So, it’s a drug addiction problem. That’s what it is. It’s nothing more than that…it’s out of control.”

In a statement, police Chief Kirk Earley said public safety remains the service’s top priority.

“We recognize that public safety is at the core of our community, and we want everyone to feel safe and welcome,” Earley said.

“Public safety is a shared responsibility; our officers are working diligently with local partners to provide support where needed and ensure public safety remains our top priority,” he said.

Police say they have increased foot and vehicle patrols in the downtown core and are collaborating with community agencies to assist people in crisis.

CTV News requested an interview with the police chief or a spokesperson, but police officials were unavailable before deadline.

“The other thing that really bothers people is that it seems like this element is completely lawless and law-abiding citizens try our best to play by the rules in society and these guys don’t,” Bondy told CTV News. “This was unacceptable behavior, which was punished years ago. And now it seems like it’s just rampant and people just turn a blind eye to it.”

Police continue to encourage residents and business owners to report incidents, saying downtown Chatham remains a safe and active community space.