Vancouver Police turn on 8 more CCTV cameras in DTES

The Vancouver Police Department says eight closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras along East Hastings Street in the city’s Downtown Eastside are being turned on following what it says are “numerous violent incidents.”

The VPD says the incidents have targeted both community members and police officers in the area.

“We continue to drive down crime and drive out predators through proactive, assertive, and targeted enforcement against violent criminals and prolific offenders who operate in the Downtown Eastside,” Deputy Chief Howard Chow said.

“Despite significant progress, there’s still ongoing and imminent risk to residents and police officers. Now is not the time to let up,” Chow claimed.

The cameras, installed at Main and East Hastings streets and at Carrall and East Hastings streets, will replace the two existing public safety trailers that were installed in April, police say.

Those trailers were put in place by the VPD after an officer was attacked with a knife, and another two had their uniforms set on fire. A 92-year-old man was also fatally assaulted in the lane behind the Carnegie Centre that same month.

Police say that the cameras are intended to deter violence while also capturing video evidence for criminal investigations.

“They will record public spaces only, and will not record audio or be used with facial recognition, artificial intelligence, or for traffic enforcement,” the VPD said. “Only authorized VPD employees will have access to recordings, which will be overwritten after four days unless required for criminal investigations.”

Police say that despite violent crime decreasing since it launched Task Force Barrage in February, “the areas around Main and Hastings and Carrall and Hastings continue to have the highest crime rates in the entire city.”

“So far in 2025, there have been 225 violent crimes, including 14 robberies, 115 assaults, and one homicide within a one-block radius of where the cameras are deployed,” police said.

Cameras aren’t there for surveillance, Vancouver Police says

Speaking to media on Friday morning, spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison explained that there has been “significant” progress in deterring crime.

In that neighborhood, overall, violent crime is down 13 per cent. Robberies are down 35 per cent. We’re seeing similar decreases in criminal activity in surrounding neighborhoods, Strathcona, Chinatown, the downtown core, and Gastown. It’s good progress, but the level of violence that we’re seeing in the neighbourhood is still way too high.”

The move to install cameras on lamp posts rather than the former public safety trailers comes because they’re frequently damaged, Addison said.

“They’re vandalized, and they have limited use,” he said.

Addison shares that the cameras are not there for surveillance, although officers will be able to access them in real time “for an emerging event, something that’s taking place, a violent crime in progress, or something where we need to live monitor.”

“The intention, though, is not to monitor them and not to use them for active surveillance,” he said.

“As part of this process, we’ve had discussions with community leaders, advocates, the Downtown Eastside business association, BIA. We’ve spoken to our Indigenous Advisory Committee. We’ve communicated with housing providers and other advocates in the neighbourhood,” he said.

“Based on those conversations, based on our knowledge of the community, we’re confident that we have widespread support for this initiative, which is meant and intended to protect the community from harm and to continue our goal of driving out violent offenders organized crime in people who are engaged in predatory behavior that makes the Downtown Eastside less safe.”

Addison says the province’s privacy commissioner has been made aware of the camera.

“We’re mindful of people’s privacy, we also know we have broad latitude for enforcement purposes to do what we’re doing, we do believe it will have an impact on public safety in the Downtown Eastside and improve safety for people who are living and working in the area, including our own officers.

1130 NewsRadio has reached out to Pivot Legal Society for comment.

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