City of Red Deer
City of Red Deer considering future with RCMP.. Police Review on Tuesday
From The City of Red Deer
City Council to discuss Police Review on Tuesday
City Council will discuss the Police Review at a Special Council Meeting on Tuesday, December 3, 2019 beginning at 9:30 a.m.
In November 2018, City Council directed Administration to undertake an independent review of policing services in Red Deer. The review is comprised of two parts, a Governance Review that identifies the opportunities and challenges with various policing operating models, as well as a Service Review with recommendations on enhancing services with the existing RCMP contract.
“The Police Review provides a comprehensive and independent look at delivery options for policing services in Red Deer,” said Paul Goranson, Director of Protective Services. “The report does not make a recommendation on a preferred model but identifies opportunities and challenges with either option.”
As part of the Service Review, Red Deer was compared to other cities with either RCMP contracts or their own municipal police service. The report shows that the cost of policing in Red Deer is comparable to other similar sized cities, while the Red Deer detachment has higher caseloads per full time equivalent employee.
“The Service Review makes eight recommendations to enhance services currently provided, however further study is required before implementation,” said Goranson.
The budget for the Police Review was approved at $200,000.
For more information, review the following Q & A.
Police Review: Service Review and Governance Review
In November 2018, City Council directed Administration to undertake an independent review of policing services for Red Deer. The review comprises of two parts, a Governance Review that identifies the opportunities and challenges with various policing operating models, as well as a macro Service Review with service recommendations for the existing model with the RCMP contract.
Governance Review:
- What policing operating models were evaluated as part of the Governance Review?The review looks at police governance options highlighting the opportunities and challenges with the existing RCMP contract and a Municipal Police Service.
At the onset of the review, additional governance options were considered. These included a hybrid model and a regionally-shared police service, however both were removed as standalone options in June 2019. The regionally-shared police service was considered a future expansion of a Municipal Police Service, and the hybrid option was not materially different than the contract with the RCMP or a Municipal Police Service.
Both the RCMP contract and the Municipal Police Service offer opportunities for hybrid policing through tiered policing and obtaining other specialized services from other police services.
- How were the models evaluated under the Governance Review?City Council identified three categories to be considered for evaluation: governance and oversight, operating and capital costs, and operations management. Each model (both the contract with RCMP and the Municipal Police Service) were evaluated with this criteria.
- Does the Governance Review make a recommendation in favour of one model?No, the Governance Review does not recommend one model over another. The report identifies challenges and opportunities with both models.
For example, under governance and oversight, the report indicates that The City of Red Deer, through a police commission could have greater local control over operational priorities with a Municipal Police Service. However, under the RCMP model, The City has significantly less risk and liability.
For operating and capital costs, The City, with the RCMP model, currently receives a 10 per cent federal subsidy. If a Municipal Police Service was established, the subsidy would be eliminated and there would be one time transition costs as well as a higher ongoing operating cost.
Under operations management, the RCMP model allows for access to specialized units, training and additional resources. With a Municipal Police Service, these services would be provided internally or through agreements with other police services.
4. What are the cost differences between the two policing models?
The RCMP operating costs are projected to be $43,755,000 in 2023. A Municipal Police Service operating costs are projected to be $50,899,000 with transition costs projected at approximately $13,583,000. These numbers are estimates only and could change based on a variety of factors.
Service Review:
- How does Red Deer compare to other detachments?The cost of policing in Red Deer is comparable to other similar sized cities, however the Red Deer detachment has higher caseloads per full time equivalent employee. Red Deer budgets for 171 RCMP members, which are complemented by approximately 100 City employees with duties that range from traffic and bylaw enforcement, public services, policing support, records management, dispatching calls, and crime analytics.
- A customer satisfaction survey was included as part of the Service Review, what were the results?In spring 2019, customers who either visited the detachment in person or called the police non- emergency line were asked to participate in a short survey about their satisfaction. Participants were asking for services, such as criminal record checks, police certificate or to report a crime. Overall, 92 per cent of respondents indicated that they were either satisfied or very satisfied with the services received.
- What recommendations were made as part of the Service Review?The consultant identified the following opportunities to consider as ways to enhance services provided under the RCMP contract:
- Expansion of a tiered policing model to manage labour and associated personnel costs
- Alternative service delivery for police checks and collision reporting
- Use of technologies to increase the efficiency of officers
- Achieve full complement of planned officers or reallocate funding to other policing priorities
- Greater use of community policing and investment in prevention
- Expanded use of intelligence led policing
- Establishment of service level standards
- Monitoring and reporting of service level performance to counter perceptions and drive improvements
Further study is required prior to implementation of some of the above opportunities.
It’s a telling detail about the person who leads Red Deer City Council. Always putting the city’s needs ahead of his own, Mayor Ken Johnston has announced his intentions within days of the opening of Nominations for October’s municipal elections,
After 12 years on council, Mayor Ken Johnston has decided against running for a second term as Mayor this fall. Johnson shared his decision in front of colleagues and supporters in a touching announcement on Wednesday.
At 71 years old, Johnston remains vibrant, passionate and healthy. He says that’s exactly why he and his wife Carolyn have decided now is the right time to start their next stage of life together.
Mayor Johnston listed a number of highlights and achievements he can look back on, including his help advocating for the redevelopment of Red Deer Regional Hospital, the growth of Red Deer Polytechnic, and positive moves in Economic Development.
All these lead of a feeling of ease about the decision to step away, though affordable housing and a permanent shelter for the homeless remain pressing concerns.
With about 8 months remaining in his term, Mayor Johnston is planning to push hard to move the needle on these housing issues.
“We’re looking forward to some more work and we’ll be going to the community shortly about it. So I still have optimism that maybe before the term is out we can have an announcement.”
This is the second major political announcement in Central Alberta in the last number of days. Earlier this week Red Deer Mountain View MP Earl Dreeshen announced he won’t be running in the next federal election.
City of Red Deer
Council ends reduced fine option for early ticket payment, school and playground zones start at 7 AM
City Council approves first reading of updated Traffic Bylaw and General Penalty Bylaw
Red Deer City Council completed first reading of updated Traffic Bylaw (3707/2025) and General Penalties Bylaw (3036/A-2025) that will provide clarity and consistency in application of the bylaws as well as eliminate challenges in enforcement.
Key updates to the bylaws include:
- Ticket Pre-Payment:
- Removing the option to pay a parking ticket early to receive a reduced fee from the General Penalty Bylaw and adding it to the Traffic Bylaw.
- School and Playground Zone Start Times:
- Through investigating requests from schools to have school and playground zones start at 7 a.m., rather than 8 a.m., Administration determined that almost all school and playground zones in the city have students on the street prior to 7:30 a.m. To be consistent across the city, the start time is being moved to 7 a.m. providing an added measure of safety for all students.
- Salt on Sidewalks:
- Removing the provision prohibiting the use of salt on sidewalks as this provision was rarely reported and it is difficult and costly to enforce.
- Permits:
- More structure was added to the bylaw to clearly articulate conditions and requirements of Use of Streets Permits, as well as Excavation Permits and Alignment Permits.
- Lastly, fees for closures impacting on-street and off-street stalls have been adjusted to reflect the actual revenue in each parking zone rather than the flat fee.
- Penalties:
- Penalties have been reviewed and updated.
- During the last bylaw adoption, the penalty associated with vehicles being towed due to snow or street sweeping operations was inadvertently missed. This penalty has been added back in at a slightly higher amount due to an increase in the cost to tow a vehicle through The City’s contractor. This prevents the costs associated with towing vehicles during these operations from being subsidized by the tax base.
“These updates streamline the bylaws to create clarity for residents and administration,” said Erin Stuart, Inspections and Licensing Manager with The City. “They also help to eliminate regulations that are challenging to enforce and bring penalties in line with other City Bylaws.”
Second reading of both bylaws is anticipated for January 27, 2025.
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