Community Support Officers Pilot Project

The Community Support Officers proposal is one of the 29 recommendations in Safe Streets - Safe City, published in 2004 by the Community Life Improvement Council.

The pilot project, commencing in May 2005, will see a team of Bylaw Officers performing the role of "Community Support Officers" (CSOs) in the Beltline communities. These CSOs will patrol the area on foot and bicycle, working with Police to address the more serious Bylaw infractions, such as graffiti, vandalism and noise.

The Community Support Officer system has developed from the idea that the regular presence of visible authority figures has a direct effect on reducing crime rates. The officers also take a more public and proactive role in bylaw enforcement, acting as eyes and ears on the streets for the Police and Bylaw Services, for an additional source of crime and disorder research. This system also frees up Police Officers to focus on criminal charges, instead of dealing with complaints such as noise and vandalism which are, in fact, bylaw infractions.

Community Support Officers will also have a significant relationship with the businesses and residents in the area, keeping open lines of communication to improve upon information exchange and response time to the various issues in the area. This will help both Bylaw Services and the Police more effectively target problem areas.

A true example of collaboration, this Community Support Officers project will see Bylaw Services, Calgary Police Service, the Beltline BRZs (Victoria Crossing, Uptown 17 and 4th Street) and the Beltline community association all working together to address issues of public safety in the Beltline.

An evaluation of the pilot project, which ran in the Beltline from May to December 2005, was completed in February 2006. Click the link to the right to download the evaluation report. For more information, visit the City of Calgary website.