A year after the community showed up in droves to a community safety town hall, a smaller group rallied to continue their call for change in the city.
On Wednesday (July 10), Pack the Park was held in Hollinger Park. At its peak, about 200 people were gathered near the pavilion at the east end of the popular space.
Organized by people behind The Voices of Timmins Facebook group, the rally was a chance for people to share their stories about how they're being impacted by the state of the city and to find possible solutions.
When the municipal election rolls around in October 2026, they're also looking for people who share their vision to be on the ballot.
"I still have hope that our city is going to come back to the way it was. It’s a lot of hard work and we need to help the people and the citizens also need help. We can’t continue living the way that we do here, it’s not working. There’s no shame in saying it didn’t work, let’s try something else — there’s no shame in that at all. That’s all everybody wants is to have a good clean, safe community to live in,” said Sonya Biemann, one of the people behind The Voices of Timmins, after the rally.
Wednesday's event was just over a year since more than 1,200 people attended a community safety town hall — Pack the Mac.
SEE: Emotional crowd packs Mac, pleads with council to make city safe
The stories shared in June 2023 about people feeling unsafe and calls for the emergency shelter to be moved out of a residential area are similar to what was heard this week.
Biemann and André Gagnon, another organizer, say there has been little progress since Pack the Mac.
“Not from the city officials there hasn’t, only from Billy G, that’s still with us. Pack the Mac, it was a great thing to bring it up to city council and the mayor, it was very well viewed, but we got lied to. We got ... broken promises by every councillor and mayor that were there. We haven’t had anything from them that’s concrete,” said Gagnon after the rally.
Ward 3 Coun. Bill Gvozdanovic and Ward 2 Coun. Lorne Feldman were the only two council members to attend the rally. Gagnon said invites were sent to all of the members. Federal Conservative candidate Gaétan Malette also attended.
After the 2023 town hall, the City of Timmins rolled out two, one-year pilot projects.
An overnight security patrol was the first initiative to launch. It saw the city hire Pads K9 Protection and Detection to patrol overnight in an attempt to reduce vandalism and crime without straining police resources. It is not being renewed.
The Mushkegowuk Fire Keeper Patrol Outreach Services was the second pilot project and is being extended.
This week, Timmins council approved adding $180,000 to the 2025 budget to allow the outreach program that connects people with services and support systems to run until Dec. 31, 2025.
Two controversial facilities in Timmins have been Safe Health Site Timmins (SHST) and Living Space.
With no funding confirmed, the supervised consumption services at SHST ended on July 1.
SEE: Timmins supervised injection site closing July 1
Last summer, Timmins council also asked the Cochrane District Social Services Board (CDSSAB) for a report to consider the options for relocating the emergency shelter Living Space outside of residential and commercial zones.
Third Party Public was hired to complete the review, however, in the report they said that it's not their "role to have an opinion on if or where the emergency shelter should be relocated." The report also included 17 issues and proposed 36 solutions identified by participants in the review.
SEE: Final Living Space relocation report released
RELATED: 'Your community is divided': Timmins shelter review leaves politicians with questions
One item that organizers of the rally and the city are in agreement about is the need for a full-service treatment facility.
“I totally agree with the wellness centre, everything in one building," said Biemann.
Almeda Wallbridge was one of the local residents who shared her thoughts at the rally and also called for a treatment centre.
“These people need treatment, they need medicine, they need a place to stay and they need to be treated with respect. That’s what they need. And we need our town back,” she said.
A motion backing a full-scale treatment facility was approved at council's June 18 meeting.
It notes that the mental health and addiction issues are at a crisis point and that partners have said that not having a facility with wrap-around services, including temporary accommodations, is an added challenge. It also calls on the provincial and federal government to review all funding and program options and allocate money for the capital and operating costs for a wellness centre in Timmins.
Looking ahead, Biemann said the number one priority is safety.
"I don’t feel that people should feel unsafe walking during the day on the streets or going into a store, especially downtown. I mean we have businesses downtown that are suffering — mine for one — and should not be afraid to walk in their own city that they were born in,” she said.
Gagnon said they're going to continue doing what they've been doing.
"We put a lot of pressure on our city, our mayor, the council, CDSSAB," he said.
"Our goal is to move Living Space ... away from Timmins, on the outskirts of Timmins. That is our end game. But, that said, we’re the Voices of Timmins so everything goes. Anything we can do to help the public, and we’re growing strong in numbers,” he said.
