One downtown Oshawa resident knows the problems extremely well from his experiences living for many years on Simcoe St. South. His recent email (copied below) describes in detail the decline he has been witnessing this spring, with a viewpoint that hits home — If critical action is not taken immediately, the situation is about to become frightening, “unmanageable and unfixable”.
In my opinion, his email is a clear call for what Oshawa leaders and citizens need to face up to: renewed action “with unrelenting pressure” this Spring to ensure a safer downtown. If in 2018 the Region of Durham could pass a by-law to restrict smoking in designated public spaces in all of its 8 municipalities, surely a way can be found to accomplish banning the public use of illegal drugs in Oshawa parks, downtown streets, empty lots and on downtown business properties.
Here is his May 29, 2025 email to me, in full:
Hello Rosemary, hope you and yours are all well. I've held back a bit from bothering you with too many updates about life on Simcoe south, hoping that by delaying, the situation would become clearer and my observations would be fair and not overly emotional.
After the shootings on John St. and the increase in violence, vandalism and crime in general, the mayor came out with strong words that this couldn't go on, that people shouldn't be afraid to step outside their door, to be able to live more normally, without feeling threats of danger.
It didn't take long to see a marked change in the monitoring and actions of the authorities. The results, although far from perfect, were at least tangible and gave us some hope that this time things might improve substantially.
But as before, that approach seems to have run its course and seems no longer to be the game plan. Not sure what the new plan is, but I see way less intervention by all authorities and it has brought back the same old issues. In spades! It looks like we've given up almost completely. On any given night now there are 30 or more drug users setting up camp on the block south of John. They’re already staking out their places by late afternoon. Most are still there at 9 or 10 the next morning, on my front steps and other private properties.
But it's even worse than that. Over the past week or two I've seen a massive influx of new individuals coming onto the scene. Trust me, they are not from Oshawa. They appear to be more threatening, dangerous, seriously drugged out and pretty much unafraid of any repercussions. Probably because there aren't any. The drug scene is rampant, without fear and wide open. the strewn garbage can't be called littering, it's much, much worse. And of course we all need to relieve ourselves. When you've got hundreds of people living on the sidewalks and no toilets, you can imagine the disgusting and uncivilized results.
It's still only May and it sickens me to think of what is yet to come. The City, the Region, the police, everyone, cannot ease up. It's obvious that
doing so leads to serious problems pretty much immediately. These people are expert at reading the situation and taking it over for their benefit. WE CAN'T LET UP. If we do, things will become unmanageable and unfixable.
I'm sure you've seen videos on YouTube of what's happening in Vancouver and many other cities. Frightening. I can't accept that happening here, given the resources and manpower and money and expertise to deal with this. Check out what the William's Lake, BC council is doing. I know it's an unpleasant part of everyone's job but that's just how it is. It must be done.
My one strong recommendation is to apply constant unrelenting pressure, make them pack up their pathetic gear several times a day and especially at night. Move. Move! Rousting works, as was most evident immediately after the mayor's press conference, but lasted only for a couple weeks. there must be some places for them to go but not on the sidewalks of Simcoe, the gateway heading into our sad downtown. this alone has probably contributed 80% to the tragedy happening to the downtown businesses. The vacancies! As 1000's of cars pass by (with doors locked) and see this, how many stop or would return for shopping or restaurant or whatever?
This large volume of passing traffic has been programmed over the years to avoid going downtown, only to pass through because of ab and sub normal and even depraved things they see. And they tell everyone they know. And then go on social media. so you can put benches, planters, pretty lights, banners, fancy bike racks and bike lanes no one uses and build parkettes downtown, that's good, but until Simcoe South is cleared up NOW, of this dysfunctional group, I don't see any hope for our downtown's future. As Simcoe south goes so goes the downtown. Not rocket science. Also, if the drug scene keeps being ignored, kiss the downtown goodbye.
In my opinion, his email is a clear call for what Oshawa leaders and citizens need to face up to: renewed action “with unrelenting pressure” this Spring to ensure a safer downtown. If in 2018 the Region of Durham could pass a by-law to restrict smoking in designated public spaces in all of its 8 municipalities, surely a way can be found to accomplish banning the public use of illegal drugs in Oshawa parks, downtown streets, empty lots and on downtown business properties.
Here is his May 29, 2025 email to me, in full:
Hello Rosemary, hope you and yours are all well. I've held back a bit from bothering you with too many updates about life on Simcoe south, hoping that by delaying, the situation would become clearer and my observations would be fair and not overly emotional.
After the shootings on John St. and the increase in violence, vandalism and crime in general, the mayor came out with strong words that this couldn't go on, that people shouldn't be afraid to step outside their door, to be able to live more normally, without feeling threats of danger.
It didn't take long to see a marked change in the monitoring and actions of the authorities. The results, although far from perfect, were at least tangible and gave us some hope that this time things might improve substantially.
But as before, that approach seems to have run its course and seems no longer to be the game plan. Not sure what the new plan is, but I see way less intervention by all authorities and it has brought back the same old issues. In spades! It looks like we've given up almost completely. On any given night now there are 30 or more drug users setting up camp on the block south of John. They’re already staking out their places by late afternoon. Most are still there at 9 or 10 the next morning, on my front steps and other private properties.
But it's even worse than that. Over the past week or two I've seen a massive influx of new individuals coming onto the scene. Trust me, they are not from Oshawa. They appear to be more threatening, dangerous, seriously drugged out and pretty much unafraid of any repercussions. Probably because there aren't any. The drug scene is rampant, without fear and wide open. the strewn garbage can't be called littering, it's much, much worse. And of course we all need to relieve ourselves. When you've got hundreds of people living on the sidewalks and no toilets, you can imagine the disgusting and uncivilized results.
It's still only May and it sickens me to think of what is yet to come. The City, the Region, the police, everyone, cannot ease up. It's obvious that
doing so leads to serious problems pretty much immediately. These people are expert at reading the situation and taking it over for their benefit. WE CAN'T LET UP. If we do, things will become unmanageable and unfixable.
I'm sure you've seen videos on YouTube of what's happening in Vancouver and many other cities. Frightening. I can't accept that happening here, given the resources and manpower and money and expertise to deal with this. Check out what the William's Lake, BC council is doing. I know it's an unpleasant part of everyone's job but that's just how it is. It must be done.
My one strong recommendation is to apply constant unrelenting pressure, make them pack up their pathetic gear several times a day and especially at night. Move. Move! Rousting works, as was most evident immediately after the mayor's press conference, but lasted only for a couple weeks. there must be some places for them to go but not on the sidewalks of Simcoe, the gateway heading into our sad downtown. this alone has probably contributed 80% to the tragedy happening to the downtown businesses. The vacancies! As 1000's of cars pass by (with doors locked) and see this, how many stop or would return for shopping or restaurant or whatever?
This large volume of passing traffic has been programmed over the years to avoid going downtown, only to pass through because of ab and sub normal and even depraved things they see. And they tell everyone they know. And then go on social media. so you can put benches, planters, pretty lights, banners, fancy bike racks and bike lanes no one uses and build parkettes downtown, that's good, but until Simcoe South is cleared up NOW, of this dysfunctional group, I don't see any hope for our downtown's future. As Simcoe south goes so goes the downtown. Not rocket science. Also, if the drug scene keeps being ignored, kiss the downtown goodbye.