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City upping security downtown with more bylaw officers

City upping security downtown with more bylaw officers
GOVAWinter2
(File)

The city will kick off a seven-month pilot project sometime in early April with the goal of increasing safety and providing an added level of service in the downtown core.

Six new bylaw enforcement officers (three full-time and three part-time) will be added to the ranks, as the city will have two of the officers on duty at all times for 16 hours a day during the pilot. 

Applications for the positions are now open and the city hopes to have the positions filled this week and begin training the new officers.

The seven-month pilot project will cost $275,000, and will be funded by using $225,000 from the Ontario Cannabis Legalization Implementation Fund. The remainder will come from the downtown Sudbury BIA.

The downtown transit terminal will be a focal point for these new bylaw officers, but Greater Sudbury manager of security and bylaw services Brendan Adair says that this pilot is aimed at the downtown as a whole.

"The intent of this is focused towards the downtown core, so we've got the terminal, Mackenzie Library, Memorial Park and the streets themselves," said Adair. 

"We're not going to be out kicking people off the streets, that's not the intent of this, but we'll be providing an overall presence at those locations proactively and responsively."

These bylaw enforcement opportunities will have the opportunity to collaborate with Greater Sudbury Police Services, along with other social service providers in the city, to act not only as a means of enforcement, but as a point of contact for those who may need to be connected with services in the city.

"They'll be helping people connect with the services they need. In the event that there is some level of disruption, we do have a service level to accomplish that," said Adair. 

"Let's say someone is asked to leave the Mackenzie Library for being disruptive, if they say they're not going anywhere, that call goes to police. Somebody just sitting and not going anywhere isn't an emergency call in the police world, but for the staff member they want someone to come, so that service level is going to be provided by those officers."

Adair adds that these new bylaw officers are not a replacement for police officers, though they will be authorized to issue tickets under city bylaws such as the city's parks bylaw, as well as the ability to enforce the Trespass to Property Act, which gives them the right to ask people to leave.

"That's not the goal here, it's not to be an authoritative presence, the goal is to communicate with people and that's what we're looking for with this new service level," said Adair.

"Applicants would be people with strong interpersonal skills in dealing with these types of situations where they can connect people with services if they need and they can resolve conflict verbally, but they're provided with the tools in the event that they do need to issue a fine, or for the safety of somebody, afford arrest under the Trespass to Property Act."

At the completion of the pilot in November, Adair and his team will take a look at things like calls for service, number of incidents reported, as well as collaborating with police to determine whether there is support needed for their calls for service to provide an offset for non-urgent calls to police.

"I'd also be interested to determine through the BIA if there is a support from them for this service and if they feel there was an added perception of safety for the downtown. We'll also ask our employees, like the Mackenzie Library and ask if it's made their employment more enjoyable," said Adair.

"Let's be clear, this service is not being brought in because our facilities are unsafe, but there can be that perception. We've had some serious incidents at the transit terminal and that sticks with people, if we can change that perception... we've done a lot of work through GOVA to better the service, so something as simple as being able to respond to an on-board bus issue, people will see that and see our service is safe, and realize we're able to respond to disruptions, so it's just about providing that perception."


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