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Timbits, coffee and discarded drug syringes.

An awareness event this week on Glengarry Avenue, including a health care offering and a used needle drive, is the latest step in an ambitious plan by Windsor police and their partners to combat the Windsor’s most crime-ridden neighborhood.

“We can’t just come here, arrest a whole bunch of people and think it’s all going to go away,” Windsor Police Chief Jason Bellaire told the Star.

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“What we do is recruit our partners. We use all the reliable partners we have. They set up things like a vaccination clinic. They set up tables to connect to services.

The Community Care Fair held Thursday and Friday at Wheelton Manor, 333 Glengarry, targeted residents of the 300 and 400 blocks of Glengarry. This is statistically the most violent neighborhood in Windsor, according to police.

The Windsor Police Service, Windsor Regional Hospital, Windsor-Essex Family Services, Canadian Mental Health Association and Windsor Essex Community Housing Corporation hosted the two-day event.

The care fair follows the launch on August 10 of an enhanced anti-crime initiative, with Windsor police stationed at 333 Glengarry Avenue. If the Glengarry area is the most violent neighborhood in Windsor, Wheelton Manor is the epicenter of this struggle.

“This building has a lot of problems,” said Adrienne Brown, who lives in the neighborhood. “A lot of drug addicts live here. This building is classified as a problem building.

“You just have to think positive. The community needs to work more with construction people. More support.

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Since opening an office in the building, city police said reports of violent crime in the area have decreased by 18.7 percent. Drug-related crime in the neighborhood decreased by 37.5 percent. Arrests related to violating bail conditions and other court orders increased by 22.7 percent.

Residents take note.

Jolene Brignall said the building was plagued by stabbings, vandalism, drugs and other crimes, but the situation was improving.

“I’ve seen a positive change,” said Brignall, who has lived at 333 Glengarry for three years. “There are people who express their desire to help the neighborhood return to its former state.

“I see a positive change and I’m happy that there are services that come here and want to help us.”

Windsor’s police chief said this week’s health fair was part of the “follow-up.”

In addition to coffee and donuts, police and their partner organizations offered various types of assistance, including medical treatment and vaccinations, mental health support, harm reduction kits and safety equipment for the children.

Society has failed these people for a long time

“Services that people in this particular neighborhood may not even know are available,” Bellaire said. “The reason they don’t know these products are available is because I think society has failed these people for a long time.”

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Many residents were present for the event.

“Just check out what they have and get more information about neighborhood safety and naloxone kits, as well as mental health and drugs,” Brignall said. “These are purely security concerns. There’s a lot going on.

Some outreach workers also collected discarded needles around the building. Teams of nurses and police knocked on apartment doors to check on people and encourage them to come to the fair.

“We’ve always offered help to people, and at the end of the day, those people are disappointed because that help isn’t there or there’s no follow-up to get what they’re looking for,” Bellaire said.

“We need to take this opportunity to rebuild that trust so that the people we are trying to bring to these services actually trust all of us.” Not just the police, but trust us all.

Brown also noted that the drop in crime has been undeniable since the officers moved in, adding that it was encouraging to see the police “trying to connect with the community.”

“Let you know they’re here,” said Brown, who lives at 445 Glengarry. “You don’t have to be afraid to talk to them if you have a problem.

“They are here, they want to work with the community.”

Residents who need support and resources can call Victim Services Windsor Essex County at 519-723-2711 or to the Windsor Police Victims Unit at 519-255-6700, ext. 20. 4879.

[email protected]

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