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My response to today’s lead editorial in the Guardian, submitted as a letter to the editor:

A recent Guardian editorial (Community policing equals safer cities, August 12, 2009) discussed the elimination by the Charlottetown Police Services (CPS) of its Community Policing Officer position. As noted, this move was a recommendation in the Organizational Review & Evaluation of the CPS released earlier this year; however, this should not be understood as a retreat from community policing principles. Rather, the CPS is in the midst of reorganizing and developing a strategic plan that will put the task of community policing at the core of the CPS Mission: “As guardians of the Birthplace of Canada, the Charlottetown Police Services, working with the community, will provide high quality police services and maintain a safe and peaceful environment for residents and visitors.”

Responsibility for spearheading this mission will now reside with our newly appointed Deputy Chief, who has been tasked with oversight of Operations and Community Policing. This provides the advantage of having a senior ranking officer undertaking a larger leadership role, and helps to underscore our objective to have all members playing a role in community initiatives.

The strategic plan also defines our Vision, or why we are here: “To work in partnership with the community to enhance the quality of life through Crime Prevention, Enforcement and Education.” In addition, four of the eight CPS Core Values specifically address the community, and in the near future the mayor will be appointing members of a new Community Consultative Group that will help guide and validate the priorities of the CPS.

All of our considerable efforts over the past five months have been focused on aligning CPS operations with national policing trends and implementing a truly comprehensive philosophy of community policing, as articulated by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police this week in Charlottetown. The job of connecting with the community will not belong to any singular officer, but to the whole of the CPS.

We are on the right track. Council has committed to ensuring we have the best policing service in the country. We are renewing the CPS in ways that are already improving public confidence, and will pay dividends for the whole community well into the future. The commitment to the shared values of the CPS and the community at large is best exemplified by our new slogan: “Our City. Our Community. Our Responsibility.”

Councillor Rob Lantz
Chair, Police & Bylaw Enforcement Committee

Former Councillor and Chair of the Police & Bylaw Enforcement Committee, Bruce Garrity, sent me a copy of a letter he submitted to the Guardian in which he offers praise for the recent focus on traffic enforcement, but also some criticism on other matters. He asked me to reply to his comments on the police, but since he has already taken to the public forum, I thought it was appropriate (and fair) to respond publicly rather than by email.

Here is Mr. Garrity’s submission to the Guardian, printed in today’s edition.

I’ll respond to what he has deemed “Not Well Done” by me and the police.

1. In a recent interview I was asked about the cost of the Charlottetown Police Service’s new Downtown Depot and I “would not or could not” answer a question about the cost of this initiative. The reason is nobody knows the full cost yet, but as anyone can see in the City budget (section 8, page 2 of 2), we set aside $20,000 for the downtown office. I do know that we will pay approximately $4000 to lease the office space. The landlord, Dyne Holdings, very graciously paid for much of the fit-up costs on the office space, so it is unlikely we will spend the full amount we budgeted. I disagree with Mr. Garrity’s opinion that the Downtown Depot is “smoke and mirrors”. It was a recommendation (4d) in the Organizational Review of the CPS, and the official opening was well attended by both residents and business owners who are very grateful to have this new police presence in the downtown.
2. Mr. Garrity asks about photo radar. The City officially requested the enabling legislation to use photo radar approximately one year ago. The provincial government is actively working with their lawyers to draw up the legislation, and rewrite existing legislation that will be affected. To judge the police “not well done” on this issue is unfair. We cannot legally use photo radar at this time.
3. In Mr. Garrity’s opinion the Police Chief should be the spokesperson for the Charlottetown Police Service. While the Chief certainly needs to be a prominent and well recognized leader, the Organizational Review of the CPS recommended (4f) the following to help connect with the community:
   “…assign responsibility for media relations to the platoon sergeants, with the Chief and Deputy being available for major events or serious crimes.”

   “Mandate the duty patrol sergeant as the working level point of contact for media relations. Mandate the Inspector, Community Policing [i.e., the new Deputy Chief] as the focal point for all media and community relations.”

4. On the bicycle helmet issue, I will only say that the new awareness and enforcement initiative is a positive example of a collaborative effort between the police and community groups; in this case, the Atlantic Network for Injury Prevention and the Brain Injury Coalition of PEI. Mr. Garrity wants to “punish” the police for their omissions of the past. I prefer to look ahead and I congratulate the police for this new initiative.

All in all, things are looking good at the Charlottetown Police Service. The shortcomings identified in the Organizational Review are being addressed. We have acted on most of the recommendations in the report and we continue to move forward. I have been approached a number of times by City residents who have recognized the renewed efforts of the CPS. Have you taken notice of their improved presence? I have. I sense the public’s confidence in the CPS is improving, and I believe morale among the police themselves is improving. It’s all a result of the actions we’ve taken over the last number of months and the commitment and dedication of our police officers.

I say, well done!

A front page story in the Guardian today requires a correction. Although I only read the online version, which was updated this morning after I spoke to the reporter, I can only assume the print edition repeats the same mistake: that the City will be paying police officers for off duty work performed for third-party clients. This work is known as Paid Duty, or Extra Duty. The story strongly implied that the cost of this work would be a new expense and that taxpayers would be subsidizing security for private businesses.

Not true. Members of the Charlottetown Police Service will continue to perform Extra Duty, but clients will be invoiced for the service and payment will be through the Police’s regular payroll. User pays — not the taxpayer. Big difference.

Yesterday was a big day for the Charlottetown Police Service. With the release of the comprehensive review by Verheul & Associates, we now begin the task of implementing the recommendations contained in the report. There was certainly enough criticism to go around in the report, and much of it was not unexpected.

This review was unlike anything the CPS has undergone before. Many people have referenced a process that took place about sixteen years ago, but that was a limited, internal review and probably resulted in very little real change.

Yesterday, I answered the question of low morale by pointing out that morale in any organization is a function of employee engagement and professional fulfillment, among other things. The rank and file of the CPS was fully engaged in the development of this report and its recommendations. The reaction from the police union to the report has been positive so far, and I hope we’re already on our way to rebuilding morale.

My own approach is not to assign blame and point fingers, but move forward to solve the problems that were identified. The culture and practices of the CPS have evolved over many decades to address the needs of a city that no longer exists. The department was simply not organized in a way that effective leadership was possible in today’s policing environment.

My committee will be focused almost exclusively on implementing the report’s recommendations over the foreseeable future. The goal is to break the small town mould of the pre-amalgamation CPS, and develop a professional, accountable and motivated force for the larger, more complex community we have become.

The report is available on the City’s website, but it was announced at the press conference yesterday that it would only be posted there for thirty days. I don’t know who made that decision or why, because it makes no sense to me. It’s a public document now and I have posted it online where it will be available, well, forever.

There is no moratorium. I was asked to consider the idea, and I agreed to take it to my committee, but that is a routine courtesy that I extend to any councillor, not a commitment to impose a moratorium. I personally don’t think it’s necessary.

We will certainly be careful to scrutinize any future requests so we have some confidence that a drive-thru can accommodate the expected volume of traffic, but I would also remind the public not to line up in a public right-of-way. I will ask the Chief of Police to enforce this if necessary.

This isn’t a new problem, and to my knowledge there’s never been a serious incident as a result. However, I do recognize the concerns, and I want to deal with them. There is no question the line ups are creating a traffic impediment, but we can’t collectively punish every business that has, or wants, a drive-thru because of the popularity of a handful of Tim Horton’s.

I will be meeting with the Police & Bylaw Enforcement Committee later this month for the first time since becoming chair. We will decide on a course of action then. I still think a cooperative approach will result in the best overall solution.

Today the Mayor announced changes to the Standing Committees at City Hall. I am no longer the Chair of the Human Resources & Pension Committee, but will instead spend the second half of my term serving as Chair of the Police & Bylaw Enforcement Committee.

My time on the HR Committee has been very interesting and rewarding, and I have been happy to maintain the confidential nature of much the committee’s business. Chairing the Police Committee will be a much more public challenge. I can expect a regular barrage of difficult questions from my fellow councillors at Council meetings, as well as demands to meet ever increasing expectations from the public.

The Charlottetown Police Services are currently under a full independent review. The review is being conducted by an incredibly impressive duo “from away” with deep experience in policing, police auditing, and organizational change management. I look forward to receiving their report and implementing its recommendations with Chief Smith and Deputy Chief Collins.

I am also pleased that I will continue to work with the City’s Director of HR, Andrew Thompson, who is also the Director responsible for Police Services.  Andrew is a real professional and a helluva nice guy. He has shepherded me through my first two years of committee work and I am very happy that we will continue to work together.

Police, eh? Who’d a thunk it? I’ve got some learnin’ to do in the New Year.

It took a year — and a bit of prodding as recently as a few weeks ago — but I finally got what I wanted.

The signage is very clear but one thing is missing that everyone should keep in mind — speeding fines in school zones are now doubled. We requested provincial legislation to allow these new fines and I was very pleased when government passed it. This should probably be noted on the signs.

Drive safely tomorrow. Keep an eye out for our students. Ward 3 has a big student population with four or five schools either in the ward proper, or right on the boundary. On a personal note, my six-year old son starts grade one tomorrow. It’s going to be a big day!

Complaints about traffic violations and a perceived lack of police enforcement have always been high on the list of things residents bring to my attention. Tonight at our monthly public meeting of council, someone suggested we should be publishing on the city’s website the monthly report of statistics of police activity that all councillors receive. I expressed my support for this idea, and I will get the ball rolling here by posting one particular stat that stood out this month.

Highway Traffic Act tickets issued (year to date):

2007: a few short of 1400
2008: less than 700

Why the huge drop? Are there fewer speeders, red light runners, and stop sign-optional drivers? Or is enforcement simply down by half?

UPDATE: Answers here.