Calgary Plus 15 Network: Policing Priorities Under Fire

CALGARY, AB — A sharp question about policing priorities in Calgary's Plus 15 network is sparking friction over who gets enforcement and who gets ignored. Commentator Peter McCaffrey dropped the observation on social media today: why are cops quick to arrest signature collectors in the skywalks but seemingly absent when people openly smoke crack in the same corridors?

The clash hits at the core of downtown enforcement strategy. The Plus 15—a maze of enclosed pedestrian bridges connecting towers across the core—operates under a legal split personality. While the Calgary Plus 15 Policy (adopted July 2021) designates the walkways as "protected public easement areas" for passage, the bridges themselves sit within privately owned buildings. Property owners hold the cards on who stays and who goes.

That's where the Calgary Police Service Agent Status Program enters the picture. It allows private landlords to authorize CPS to enforce trespassing without calling first every time. Under the Alberta Trespass to Premises Act (2019), violations can trigger fines up to $10,000 for first-timers and $25,000 for repeats—plus six months behind bars. Translation: if you're collecting petition signatures without permission, property managers can deploy cops to remove you fast.

The Other Side of the Coin

Meanwhile, open drug use in public spaces—including the Plus 15—falls under a patchwork of enforcement tools. The City of Calgary Cannabis Consumption Bylaw (2018) hits recreational pot smokers with $100 tickets in public areas. But crack? That's a tougher call. City Council voted last September to explore a broader bylaw banning all open drug use in public, with violators routed to a Community Court pilot. Administration's report was due early this year—right around now—but no public update has surfaced.

CPS launched Operation Order in November 2025, flooding downtown with over 100 officers and bylaw enforcers to tackle crime and social disorder, including drug use. Chief Katie McLellan pledged it wasn't a one-off blitz. Yet McCaffrey's observation suggests enforcement remains uneven where it counts most for daily commuters navigating the skywalks.

The Accountability Gap

The frustration hinges on visibility. Property owners invoke trespass laws to scrub unwanted activity—political canvassers, panhandlers, anyone lingering too long. But public drug consumption, which directly impacts the safety and comfort of thousands of Plus 15 users, appears to draw less consistent response. The intelligence dossier flags a critical unknown: How many calls for service related to public drug use in the Plus 15 has CPS fielded in the last year, and what happened—arrests, referrals, or nothing?

Without that data, McCaffrey's question hangs in the air unanswered. The mechanism exists—Agent Status for trespass, bylaws for drugs, a $613 million CPS budget for 2026 (up $59 million from last year, including 21 new officers). What's unclear is whether the priority matrix inside CPS aligns enforcement resources with the lived reality of people moving through the core every day.

What's Next

Mayor Jeromy Farkas and Council are awaiting administration's report on the proposed open drug use bylaw. The Calgary Police Commission, chaired by Amtul Siddiqui, oversees budget and priorities but hasn't publicly addressed the Plus 15 enforcement gap. Premier Danielle Smith's Public Safety Minister, Mike Ellis, has been in talks with the City about expanding bylaw officers' authority to intervene in drug cases.

The question remains live: if the Plus 15 is public enough for easement protections, is it public enough for consistent enforcement on the behaviors that actually scare people away from downtown?