\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
![\"MIKAELA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4399209_web1_260629-Fire-trucks-00179.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
MIKAELA MACKENZIE \/ FREE PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mayor Scott Gillingham said he\u2019s witnessed notable changes around city hall.<\/p>\n
Mayor Scott Gillingham said the decision on whether to release the data is up to police, noting city council doesn\u2019t have the power to direct law enforcement operations.<\/p>\n
However, he said he would like to see those details.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny information that could be provided, I think would be welcome,\u201d said Gillingham.<\/p>\n
Police did release early details of the operation. WPS said officers \u201cinteracted\u201d with more than 100 people on June 24 and 25, with an initial focus on Main Street between Logan and Higgins avenues.<\/p>\n
On those days, police arrested 25 people, with two of the arrests related to drug possession or trafficking. The other 23 were related to active warrants and breaches of court orders.<\/p>\n
Police say they transported about 20 severely intoxicated people to emergency departments during that period.<\/p>\n
While details have not been released since, Gillingham said he\u2019s witnessed notable changes around city hall, which he credits to the operation.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight outside city hall, there is a bus stop on Main Street (and William Avenue) \u2026 Before the police started this open enforcement, every day I would see people using drug paraphernalia, taking drugs, smoking drugs in that bus shelter \u2026 multiple times a day. (These were) people, my staff and others, would respond to, who were overdosing or appearing to be overdosing in front of city hall \u2026 I have not seen people using drugs in that transit shelter since the police cracked down on open, illegal drug use,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny information that could be provided, I think would be welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n
The mayor said he believes the police work should continue.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of people have expressed their appreciation for the Winnipeg Police Service and the crackdown \u2026 We can be compassionate to people who are struggling with addictions and, at the same time, uphold the law and make sure that our public spaces are available for the public,\u201d said Gillingham.<\/p>\n
Ensuring kids can play in parks without the risk of stepping on needles and keeping transit shelters free of second-hand drug fumes are key priorities, he said.<\/p>\n
Multiple outreach groups have opposed the police operation, saying police confiscated harm-reduction supplies and some drug users moved to more private spaces, further from services and supports.<\/p>\n
The Free Press reached out to social service agencies Wednesday, who referred reporters to a statement released by Manitoba Harm Reduction network on July 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the coming weeks, we hope to meet with WPS to ensure accountability for this campaign, including a transparent review of its outcomes,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n
The mayor said police are working with frontline agencies to help both sides understand each other\u2019s roles in addressing substance use and addictions.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolice (are) working with the social service agencies, if this enforcement is going to continue, to make sure that those who are struggling are getting the help that they need,\u201d said Gillingham.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur members said (safety) improved (but an) absence of something is sometimes difficult to measure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joe Kornelsen, executive director of the West End BIZ, said he would \u201cabsolutely\u201d like to see data from the entire operation.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur members said (safety) improved (but an) absence of something is sometimes difficult to measure,\u201d said Kornelsen.<\/p>\n
Reports of violent threats against employees \u201csignificantly diminished\u201d during the police operation, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of us are very concerned about the escalating level of violence and threats that we\u2019re seeing, robberies, \u2026 stabbings and things that were deeply concerning,\u201d said Kornelsen.<\/p>\n
He said addressing root causes of crime is essential to making the area safer in the longer term but quick action also helped.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe urgency of the situation we\u2019re dealing with today just required an urgent response,\u201d said Kornelsen.<\/p>\n
Coun. Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) said she supports the enforcement effort, noting drugs were being sold in broad daylight in front of high schools and businesses in her ward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to have to do some crackdown on what\u2019s going on around the community,\u201d said Gilroy.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Ensuring kids can play in parks without the risk of stepping on needles and keeping transit shelters free of second-hand drug fumes are key priorities, Gillingham said.<\/p>\n Gilroy said she would like more details on the results of the enforcement, especially on the number of drug dealers who were arrested.<\/p>\n joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n X: @joyanne_pursaga<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t Joyanne Pursaga Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWAYNE GLOWACKI \/ FREE PRESS FILES
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Reporter
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n