For one resident at Thunder Bay Housing's Limbrick Place, the death of Jimmy Monias is a stark reminder of how unsafe her neighbourhood can be.

"It's not a place you go outside at night time,” said Deanna Faulconer, who has lived at the housing complex for nearly four years.

She said, during that time, the neighbourhood has become increasingly dangerous and that violent people are around her home at all hours of the day.

She said it makes her worry for the safety of her two children.

“My choice is, if I could get out of here I would. It's not somewhere you wanna be — especially if you have kids.”

Community needs help

The head of the Thunder Bay Multicultural Youth Centre, Moffat Makuto, said it doesn't have to be this way. The group released a study this spring which identified problems — and potential solutions — in the Limbrick neighbourhood.

Makuto said people in the community want to make it a better place, but they just need help to make it happen.

“Groups like Neigbourhood Watch (would be) run by the Limbrick people themselves,” he said.

“They know what's going on. They just need a little more training and support to take ownership of their neighbourhood.”

According to Thunder Bay District Housing Corporation's website, Limbrick Place was once called Lasalle Place. The property consists of 83 units arranged in row-type housing.

Makuto said the return of neighbourhood policing to Limbrick would be a good start.

Thunder Bay Police shut down that initiative in the spring of 2010.

Solutions can’t come soon enough for Faulconer, however.

“You see people, but you don't know half the people,” she said.

“And really it is dangerous. I just stay in my house and keep my kids inside. I don't let my kids run around here either.”