WINNIPEG -- Winnipeg’s mayor said not enough is being done to handle the growing meth crisis in the city.

“The results, sadly, speaks for themselves,” said Brian Bowman in a year-end interview with CTV News Winnipeg.

Bowman noted the city is taking action to deal with the issues through programs such as the Illicit Drug Task Force and the Community Safety Crime Prevention Fund, which helped to support 23 organizations.

The mayor said that tackling the meth crisis will require a coordination of efforts from all levels of government.

“I don’t think people really care about which level of government is politically responsible. They care about results and that requires all levels of government to work more collaboratively than ever before in the new year,” he said.

THE HOMICIDE RECORD

This year Winnipeg saw its highest homicide rate, with the killings of 44 people. The city’s previous record of homicides was 41, set in 2011.

Bowman said more needs to be done to address the social issues that are causing the rise in crime. He said it can’t just be left up to police.

“Everything can’t rest on the shoulders of law enforcement, we need to deal with the root causes of crime,” he said.

“Much of those rest on the shoulders of other levels of government in terms of better dealing with mental health, addictions, families in crisis. We have a role to play as well as a municipal government.”

He said 44 homicides is not a figure any level of government or citizen wants to see.

“These are individuals with families and obviously when I look at those stats I think they are real people behind these numbers, and so it should reinvigorate everybody in the community, including governments, to do better in the new year,” he said.

IS WINNIPEG STILL SAFE?

Despite the rise in crime in 2019, Bowman said Winnipeg is not the only place in Canada facing public safety issues, citing the cities of Toronto and Vancouver.

He said he doesn’t want this to distract from the positive things going on in Winnipeg, though the city does need to focus on dealing with safety as well as other challenges.

“Let’s also not lose sight of what’s good in the community,” he said. “In many ways it’s our people, the resilience of our community.”

“Everything from reconciliation efforts to the Community Safety and Crime Prevention program, which we’re seeing many incredible organizations step up and offer assistance that’s unique to respective communities in every corner of our city.”

POTENTIAL BUDGET CUTS

When asked if the city will see budget cuts when it comes to city services, such as libraries, wading pools, and arenas, the mayor said difficult choices lie ahead.

“We are going to be making some difficult decisions that folks aren’t going to like, there’s no doubt there.”

He said the city has been operating at a structural operating deficit for a number of years, and to bring four years into balance requires hard choices. He notes that they’ve been doing the budget process differently this year by opening it up to the public, following criticism from residents who wanted earlier opportunity for input and more transparency.

“I mean we don’t have a monopoly on good ideas at city hall, certainly I don’t and other members of council don’t. We do need the community to be engaged in this process to make sure we are making the smartest decisions about taxpayers’ dollars going into a four-year balancing exercise.”

Bowman said every year the city looks at its revenues and its expenditures, and right now people are seeing more of an emphasis on the expenditure side.

“We are looking at expenditures with more scrutiny than ever before and in a much more public forum. But we’ll also be looking at our revenues as we build the budget going forward.”

The mayor also said he wouldn’t support raising property taxes from the 2.33 per cent threshold.

“My commitment was to the decimal point and it was very clear and very public,” he said.

- With files from CTV’s Maralee Caruso.