Dauphin City Council has approved a $186,840 contract (plus taxes) with Winnipeg-based Classify Security Group for a six-month Downtown Safety Patrol pilot, set to launch later in June 2026. The program, funded by a $200,000 provincial grant, will put trained security personnel in the downtown core to connect vulnerable people with services and address low-level disturbances.
The patrol is the city’s first dedicated private security initiative of this kind. It follows a formal Request for Proposals process and takes a prevention-focused approach, emphasizing outreach and de-escalation rather than enforcement. Officers will ask people who may be loitering or causing minor disturbances what they need and whether they can be connected to help.
Mayor David Bosiak said city officials had been in talks with Justice Minister Matt Wiebe about safety concerns downtown, including homelessness, mental illness, and drug-related issues. The grant, which came from Manitoba’s Safer Neighbourhoods, Safer Downtowns Public Safety Strategy, was a “pleasant surprise.” The province distributed $1.1 million across six municipalities, with Dauphin receiving $200,000.
The patrol aligns with Dauphin’s Community Safety & Well-Being Plan, which identifies five priorities: housing and houselessness, mental health and addiction, crime and safety, access to services and supports, and sense of belonging. The plan was developed with input from nearly 800 residents and local organizations, in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Safer Communities.
Before developing the program, city officials studied community safety officer models in Portage la Prairie and Thompson, where officers handle about 30 percent of the roughly 4,000 annual calls to the RCMP detachment. Unlike those full CSO programs, Dauphin’s patrol uses a contracted security service, with a focus on being a visible, supportive presence for residents and businesses.
