Sustainable public safety in St. Thomas will require both human and financial investments

Recent funding investments by the Police Services Board and the City of St. Thomas “are producing tangible results in reducing crime and social disorder” in the community.
That’s according to information provided to the board for the July meeting by St. Thomas Police Chief Marc Roskamp.
His board report cautions, however, “It is essential that future budgets reflect the operational requirements of our police services and support a responsible path forward.”
The concern is what impact a growing population and overcoming the residual effects of several years of fiscal restraint and conservative budgeting encouraged by the city will have on the 2026 police service budget.
The St. Thomas Police Service is certainly operating in lean fashion when compared to similar-sized police departments, particularly when you look at the cost per capita of delivering services.

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‘If you can get people talking about you because of what you’ve done, then more people are listening.’ – St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston

city_scope_logo-cmykThere is no denying St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston is an upbeat kinda person, no matter the situation confronting him.
It would be a safe bet to say he could be branded Jovial Joe without a whole lot of pushback from the mayor’s corner.
For example, Preston and a city delegation, including councillors Tara McCaulley and Steve Wookey along with city manager Sandra Datars Bere attended this year’s Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference earlier this week in London and we caught up with him at the culmination of the gathering and his exuberance was palpable.
According to a release prior to the conference, the city advocacy work was to “focus around resources to create new and augment existing community mental health supports, support for capital investments in affordable housing, increased support for inter-community transportation connections and initiatives, capital funding for new childcare spaces, investments in social assistance programs and administration, and support for legislative changes and funding to alleviate pressures faced by St. Thomas Police.”

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Amazon opening this fall is another employment safeguard in ‘recession-proofing’ St. Thomas and beyond

city_scope_logo-cmykWhile the economic news this spring and summer has been dominated by site preparation work for the Volkswagen/PowerCo EV battery plant in St. Thomas, YXU-1 is back in the news.
You would be correct in pointing out when was YXU-1 ever in the news.
Perhaps you know it better as the Amazon fulfillment centre located on the site of the former Ford Canada St. Thomas Assembly Plant, which closed in 2011 after 44 years of production.
YXU by the way is the three-letter identifying code for London International Airport, even though the plant is situated in Southwold Township.
The facility was expected to begin operations early this year and then it was suggested a 2024 opening may be more in line.
Well, this week Amazon Canada announced the centre north of Talbotville will open on Oct. 1.
Hiring for the two-million-square-foot facility will begin in September.

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