Lethbridge City Hall. (Lethbridge News Now)

By Sarah Jones

Community Wellbeing Safety Task Force gets the go-ahead from Lethbridge City Council

Apr 22, 2021 | 10:51 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – After two years of extensive data collection and analysis, Lethbridge City Council has approved the development of the Community Wellbeing Safety Task Force.

The Community Wellbeing and Safety Strategy (CWSS) was approved in 2019 as part of a five-year plan to improve the wellbeing and safety of Lethbridge.

In the City’s 2020 Residential Satisfaction Survey, drugs and social issues were ranked as the highest of concern for locals. City Council’s plan of action is to address these issues by installing this task force developed by the community for the community.

The City will be working with stakeholders to establish two short-term groups to address immediate needs. The first will be working to integrate social services into the community, and the second will focus specifically on public safety concerns.

Mike Fox, City of Lethbridge Director of Community Services, indicated that community partners and stakeholders have been working well together.

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“Everyone recognizes the need and we have so many passionate people ready to roll up their sleeves and get working. This next step will help us harness that energy and focus it on a shared vision and common goals. That is when we will see real success.”

The Task Force is part of Phase Two for the CWSS action plan and aims to create a community governance model founded on a shared vision, common objectives, and efficient use of resources.

Over the past several weeks, 12 meetings were organized to engage community stakeholders and gather feedback to measure the level of interest and support. Stakeholder perspectives ranged from education, faith communities, Indigenous communities, social service providers, and the general public.

Stakeholder Treena Tallow, who sits as the Reconciliation Lethbridge Advisory Committee Chair, expressed her excitement for Phase 2 of the CWSS.

“We know that collaboration is key for this type of work. No one group can own this important work, rather we all need to be at the table to embody a vision through reconciliation. It is vital that our Indigenous community has a voice at this table and as we move forward I’m excited to see how we can transform our communities together.”

As the task force is being developed, its plan is to stay at arm’s length away from council and create collective impact.

Mayor Chris Spearman also revealed that the task force will be created with a diverse group of individuals.

“I think what we’re going to do, is to try and make sure there’s broad representation. Administration will be seeking out the membership of the task force and we do hope that we hear from all perspectives.”

There’s no word yet on when the task force will be finalized.