Pubdate: Sat, 05 Jul 2003
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2003 The Vancouver Sun
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Petti Fong

HAS THE CRACKDOWN WORKED?

Residents Feel More Like Coming Out On The Street And Business Is 
Noticeably Improved

YES

The attack on Sergeant Tony Zanatta came out of nowhere as he walked down 
Hastings Street late Thursday.

A tall, scruffy man banged his shoulder against the police officer and pushed.

"Good to see you," Zanatta told his attacker, shoving back a little before 
pulling back and extending his hand.

Grinning, the man shook hands and walked away, waving goodbye.

The man, once a familiar face in the Downtown Eastside, was one of a number 
of men and women whose reappearance on the streets is one of the most 
positive things police say have come out of their crackdown on drug dealers 
in the area of Main and Hastings.

In the last few years, the increased number of dealers on the streets made 
the area too scary for many of the area's residents, including the 
alcoholics and street workers, Zanatta said.

"The people who live in the apartments above the streets are coming back 
down," Zanatta said. "Over the last three months, we've shown people who 
live and work down here that we haven't abandoned them."

Paul Barker, the manager of Save-on-Meat on Hastings, said the increased 
police presence in the area has meant increased sales.

"We've gone up 15 per cent in the last three months and I know it's all 
related to the way people think of this area," Barker said. "They think 
it's safe down here again. It's gone from downtown Beirut to a viable 
community."

There is still drug-related activity on the streets, Barker said, but there 
is less, it's less noticeable and it's less in-your-face, as he describes it.

Next door to the meat shop, about a dozen individual vendors are selling 
old shoes, books and even a television set in a parking lot, another new 
addition to the area.

Three months before the crackdown, stolen items were constantly being 
fenced in the area and the money used to purchase drugs. Now the items 
being sold are mostly stuff retrieved from dumpsters or abandoned on the 
street.

When the police increased enforcement, Rory Nymark, who works at 
Save-on-Meat, said it was like a vacation. "Coming to work didn't feel like 
going into a war zone and that was a huge change."

Resident Jeff Rozon, who has lived in the Downtown Eastside for seven 
years, said the increased police presence is welcome. "It's noticeable how 
much difference it makes," he said. "I think they should be here and 
council should fund it. The idea of law enforcement here is definitely needed." 
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