Community Security

This priority area includes the ability to meet basic needs, ability to enjoy life and participate in leisure activities, accessibility to transportation, having a sense of belonging, and being free from crime such as human trafficking, theft, assaults, and break and enter, and drug trafficking, as discussed by community stakeholders.

Security measures can include things like observation and monitoring (i.e. ‘eyes on the street’) and strategies such as Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) that seeks to understand how the built environment can better promote a sense of safety and security. For extended periods during the COVID-19 pandemic, public health measures have restricted the ability of individuals to be outside of their residences. Beyond the sense of isolation that can come from such restrictions, they have also limited people’s ability to gather in public spaces or frequent other popular areas.

Over time, perception of a formerly ‘safe’ place or space can shift due to having a different ‘feel’. Lack of safety and security, whether risk is real or perceived, can affect economic growth and investment in communities. An important component of this Priority Area is to build the capacity of existing systems, services, and initiatives to effectively engage the community and to ensure that community members feel ‘free from fear’ in Huron.