A proposed nuisance bylaw has received the first three readings by Quesnel City Council.
Mayor Bob Simpson said with the approach that the provincial and federal governments are taking to harm reduction they are seeing more and more needles and a dramatic increase in public consumption of illicit drugs within their downtown core as well as aggressive panhandling.
“So as a consequence we have been looking at what other communities have been doing to try and address that so we can create safe public spaces in key areas where we have high foot traffic and that’s why what this nuisance bylaw starts to address.”
Simpson said the proposed bylaw creates exclusion zones for panhandling as well as exclusion zones for sitting and loitering basically ‘hanging around’ creating a nuisance.
He added the bylaw also covers nuisance property which in conjunction with their new maintenance bylaw or safe rental space bylaw they can deal with residential and commercial properties that have been abandoned or are not being maintained and end up becoming drug houses and causes for many nuisance calls by the RCMP.
Council will be considering final adoption of the nuisance bylaw at their next regular Council meeting on Sept. 3.
(Editor’s Note: Listen to Mayor Bob Simpson with the author of this report in the audio file below)