Policy Brief: Built for Belonging

A vision for a safer Calgary

Dear Calgary,

When you don’t feel safe, nothing else matters.

Not how close the nearest park is. Not how good your job is. If parents are afraid to let their kids walk to school, or commuters avoid the train, it means we’re failing at the most basic promise a city should make: to protect its people.

As Calgary prepares to grow by as many as a million people in the next decade, we face a choice:

To finally deal with the root causes and build a city that’s safer, more connected, and economically successful—or continue with band-aid solutions, reacting too late, paying more, and leaving too many behind.

Growing up in Dover, my neighbourhood had crime. We saw addiction, mental health challenges, and lost people we loved. But we also had each other—maybe a neighbour who stepped in or a teacher who stuck around, providing the help and hope needed to make a difference. Later in life, as a Calgary Police Commissioner and Board Director at Big Brothers Big Sisters and The Alex, I began to see the data and research behind my lived experience. 

When we invest early—in mental health, housing, mentorship, and prevention—we not only reduce crime, we build opportunities, we keep families together, and we strengthen Calgary at its roots.

As mayor, this is my vision for a safer Calgary—from Dover to downtown, from playgrounds to train platforms. To be tough on crime and even tougher on the causes of crime. A city built for belonging: where every tax dollar works harder, every person is seen, every family is supported, and every neighbourhood feels like home.

Jeromy Farkas
Mayoral Candidate, 2025 Calgary Municipal Election