The steam clock is seen in historic Gastown in downtown Vancouver on March 17, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

VANCOUVER — Police in Vancouver have released new data they say depicts the success of a task force launched three months ago to curb crime in the city's Downtown Eastside neighbourhood.

The data correspond with the experiences of some working in the neighbourhood, with Vancouver Chinatown Business Improvement Area Society president Jordan Eng saying local merchants and residents have noticed an improvement in public safety.

"It has calmed down," Eng said. "You can always say that it could be better, but definitely we're seeing that. And it's good because we're coming also into the tourist season."

One Vancouver city councillor, however, said there has been concern from him and others about how the budget for Task Force Barrage was passed, as well as whether the operation is politically motivated and its data trustworthy.

"That would be my primary concern, that this is sort of politically motivated," councillor Sean Orr said of Task Force Barrage. "So any numbers that come out of that, you have to sort of be wary of that — that it does seem politically motivated."

Police say that in the three months since the operation was launched on Feb. 13, the task force seized 745 weapons and 79 guns, completed 414 warrant arrests and made 258 reports to Crown counsel.

The department also said it is concerned the improvements in those neighbourhoods will be lost after the operation ends in three months.

Vancouver police spokesman Sgt. Steve Addison said officers feel as though they are putting a "finger in a leaky dam," adding that a "collective effort from the entire community and from all levels of government" is needed to maintain public safety long term.

"We don't want this task force to come to an end after six months and have all the gains we've made, all the progress we've made, go for naught," Addison told reporters Thursday. "There will have to be wider discussions about how we sustain this."

The department said it has been deploying additional teams of officers to Gastown, Chinatown and Hastings Street under Task Force Barrage, allowing officers to deter crime and respond faster when incidents happen.

Violence and most property crime in those neighbourhoods has declined compared to 2024, with violent crime dropping 13 per cent in the Downtown Eastside, 13 per cent in Gastown, 26 per cent in Chinatown and 14 per cent in Strathcona.

The department data also showed serious assaults, robberies and commercial break and enters in those areas have also dropped, as have residential break and enters with the exception of Gastown which has seen no change when compared to 2024.

"Our purpose here is to target violent criminals, violent offenders, organized criminals, people who are making life unsafe for the residents of the Downtown Eastside," Addison said.

"The proof so far today based on the data that we've released is we're making significant progress. There's still a long road ahead … it's not something that we can let up on. But we're pleased with what we see."

The biggest overall declines were for commercial break and enters, ranging from 42 per cent in the Downtown Eastside to 86 per cent in Chinatown.

"We're very pleased with what we're seeing in Chinatown, a neighbourhood that's been very heavily impacted by the violence and disorder in the Downtown Eastside historically," Addison said.

Police and Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said when the operation was launched that it would be a "long-term operation to dismantle organized crime networks and target predatory criminals in the Downtown Eastside and beyond."

But Orr said the operation's budget has not gone through the police board as funding requests should, raising questions about the task force in general.

The councillor also said he has heard anecdotal reports of the increased police presence in those neighbourhoods "further criminalizing marginalized folks."

"There needs to be a balanced approach in terms of prevention, in terms of permitting a social safety net, in terms of providing adequate and dignified housing as well," Orr said. "And it seems like this is more on the end of criminalization."

Eng said the new data and increased police presence have a twofold effect of addressing public safety and showing visitors that authorities are taking the issue seriously, which will benefit local businesses by making people more likely to visit.

"Perception is hugein terms of the offerings that people can go to in other neighbourhoods of the city where they don't have to even think about the issue of crime," he said.

"I think it's good for the whole neighbourhood. When we were having the issues during COVID in Chinatown, what I said was that it doesn't matter what neighbourhood you are in … or where you're from, you should be able to feel safe in the city."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2025.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2025