KITCHENER — Waterloo Regional Police are now treating the case of missing Kitchener woman Kate Lynn Reid as suspicious.

Police recently received additional information that has caused concern, said spokesperson Olaf Heinzel.

Reid, 51, was last seen Jan. 1 at her apartment on Burn Place. Police believe she was planning a trip to the Maritimes to visit family.

However, her whereabouts since Jan. 1 aren't known. A local relative reported her missing to police on Jan. 27.

At the time, police were concerned for her well-being, as they had been told Reid has some history of addiction issues.

An investigator was assigned to the case, but "there was nothing to suggest there was anything suspicious related to" her disappearance, Heinzel said.

The new information has changed that, he said.

"It makes police believe there may be suspicious circumstances surrounding her disappearance."

The focus of the investigation remains the neighbourhood in the Highland Road West and Belmont Avenue West area where Reid lives.

Over the weekend, police set up a command post on Burn Place, where Reid lives in an apartment with a roommate, and began canvassing the area.

"The command post is an opportunity to canvass the neighbourhood and it draws attention," Heinzel said.

On Monday, two cruisers sat outside the three-storey building on the small court. Police tape blocked off a section of the yard, but the front door of the building was still accessible.

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Officers also conducted a ground search Monday in the area of the Henry Sturm Greenway, a storm water channel that flows into the Victoria Park lake.

Reid is described as five-foot-six, weighing 110 pounds with blond hair and blue eyes. Anyone with information can call police at 519-650-8500, ext. 8405, or anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.