The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Trevor Miller I would say yes, there is a fairly obvious problem with vagrancy downtown that is having a generally negative effect on businesses and shoppers using Main Street. Flin Flon does not currently have a bylaw on the books against either panhandling or loitering; perhaps creating a legal / financial disincentive for these behaviours would be the best route to take. It wouldn't take long for word to get around after the first few tickets were handed out before people changed their habits. It wouldn't have to be a huge fine, just enough to sting at little and make people move along. Ken Mansell Yes, like all urban centres large and small, there are usually some vagrant problems. Flin Flon is not the worst I have seen. The worst part is the intimidation that many pedestrians feel when walking around stationary groups that appear to have no real purpose in their presence. There is some panhandling, usually not a problem, but not always. If some are too aggressive, then phone the RCMP. Many cities now play classical music in places like transit terminals and convenience stores. It drives people to move on or pacifies them. Of all of our problems in Flin Flon, this is not a major one. Why make it one? Denny Hyndman Vagrant' is an ugly word indicating shiftless with no purpose. I hope most people wouldn't use it to describe their fellow man. We have newcomers from neighbouring communities appear for medical reasons or to support our local businesses, and Flin Flon is their main service centre, which is fabulous! Are there homeless issues in our town? Yes. Addictions? Yup. Racism? Sure. These are present anywhere, but largely we are a caring town that has looked after each other regardless of social-economic standings. Listening to the expertise of those 'in the know,' needs assessments and input from the public will give us all a better understanding of the scale of these issues.
