THUNDER BAY — A pilot project that has seen special constables patrol social housing has “been positively received by tenants” according to a recent report.
The District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board (DSSAB) signed an agreement with the Thunder Bay Police Services (TBPS) in September 2025 to implement a two-year pilot project focused on enhancing safety and well-being in DSSAB-owned buildings.
This agreement led to the creation of the Housing Safety Unit (HSU) which comprises of a team of four special constables.
The safety unit was created following demands from building residents to do something about their growing safety concerns.
The report from DSSAB states that residents “have voiced favourable responses about the pilot project, and the growing perception of safety that they are feeling because of the HSU’s work to enhance public safety. It is worth acknowledging that this pilot project would not have come to fruition without the strong support from TBPS.”
Jeremy Pearson, deputy chief of police, said the police service plans to build on the success of special constables in DSSAB buildings in 2027.
The city’s police service board reported at its October meeting that the addition of this unit, between Jan. 1 and July 31 of this year, resulted: 53 calls for service dispatched directly to special constables, 64 calls diverted from primary response (initially dispatched to primary response but redirected to special constables) and 38 enforcement actions (instances where criminal/provincial offences are issued).
Pearson said these numbers are significant because of the high calls for service volume in the community.
“Our resources are stretched and we have to prioritize and triage the calls that we respond to in the order that we respond to them.
“So anytime we can take some of that pressure away from our response-based policing and we can have something proactive, it’s an impact that’s felt not only for the community who are seeing that service more quickly, but also for our primary response officers who are then being diverted to other priority calls and having those pending calls taken off their plate.”
Pearson explained that a special constable is a distinction under the Community Safety Policing Act.
“They have specific powers, peacekeeping powers that are not the same as a as a sworn police officer, but they do have powers,” he said.
The special officers, for example, can make arrests, so they’re able to provide a policing presence without having sworn officers dispatched.
Pearson said the partnership with DSSAB is unique.
“The idea of a dedicated presence was something that we explored in partnership and it eventually, through a lot of work on all sides, evolved into something that’s been actualized.”
He said that while it is an expansion in staffing it has minimal budget impact because it is being supported financially by DSSAB through their own funding approach.
Pearson said it’s a new approach for the service and one that they’re excited about for its positive effects that address concerns around resident safety, police presence and response time.
The DSSAB plans to ask the provincial government to provide dedicated funding to the program to sustain it beyond the pilot project phase.
