Iqaluit (July 07/03) - Apex will be the first community in Nunavut to have a Neighbourhood Watch program.

The move is being welcomed by Wes Smith, who said he is continuously telling children not to play in an abandoned building in Apex.

"If they know we're out there and we're patrolling, it's definitely going to settle down," said Smith.

Cpl. Wills Thomas said that is the whole idea of the program.

"Police can not be everywhere, all the time," Thomas said at a community meeting in Apex.

"The best way you can help the police is by reporting what's going on."

Apex residents agreed to start up a Neighbourhood Watch Program at a public meeting on June 30.

Some residents were concerned that even with the program, nothing would change.

Eric Doig said he has given up reporting people who are speeding in Apex because nothing is ever done about it.

"I find it a little bit discouraging when I make repeated calls," he said.

"I never get any call back from the RCMP or the city's bylaw department."

Thomas said although the program is run by the community, the RCMP will be there to support it.

Thomas said that the police would try to have more of a presence in Apex and that eventually Neighbourhood Watch will decrease the need for police in the community.

The program will be up an running in Apex within two months. The next step is to set up block captains. If it's successful in Apex, Neighbourhood Watch may spread to other Nunavut communities.