Victoria’s police chief says he will have to find experienced officers in other jurisdictions to meet a six-month timeline to hire nine new police officers as part of the city’s $10-million plan to restore public safety and order in Victoria’s downtown.
Mayor Marianne Alto on Wednesday that includes $1.3 million for nine police officers and $1.9 million to hire 12 additional bylaw staff to focus on Pandora Avenue, Princess Street and the downtown core, promising “in six months you’ll see a difference.”
Manak applauded the initiative, but said it would take at least nine months’ lead time for police recruits to be deployed, so he will instead try to recruit officers from other police organizations to fill most, if not all, of the positions, and get “boots on the ground” more quickly.
“I’ll be having discussions with my human resources team and my recruiting team in the days ahead,” the chief said.
Manak said he is hoping to sell veteran officers on the beauty of the West Coast and Victoria amenities, and career opportunities at the largest police department on Vancouver Island, to counter concerns about the high cost of living.
More police and bylaw officers have long been needed to tackle street crime and disorder downtown, said Manak, who applauded the fact that “concrete action is actually being taken by the city.”
“It’s a breath of fresh air,” he said.
In addition to the nine police officers, the city plans to match grants from the provincial $220,000 Community Safety Targeted Enforcement Program, called CStep, to increase police visibility and foot patrols in problem areas.
The funds will be used to pay overtime for officers doing foot patrols in the downtown core and areas where criminal activity is taking place — drug trafficking, random assaults and retail crime, for example.
That program began last week.
Two of the nine new police officers will be tasked to work with bylaw officers in teams. Bylaw officers “have challenges around their own safety” in trying to do their jobs and get co-operation, said Manak.
Under the new plan, two dedicated police officers will work with bylaw officers as they try to encourage voluntary compliance from those aggressively panhandling, overtaking city sidewalks, camping in prohibited areas or otherwise threatening public safety.
Manak said he’s also been working closely with the B.C. Prosecution Service, since increased foot patrols and officers need to be combined with changes to the criminal justice system.
“We need greater penalties, more consequences for prolific offenders and career criminals, and we need a high level of deterrence,” he said.
The city has said money from its current budget will be diverted to fund the downtown safety plan so there are no budget or tax increases.
The total cost of a “comprehensive rebuild” of the 800, 900 and 1000 blocks of Pandora Avenue, which has become a haven for tent encampments and drug trafficking, is estimated at more than $7 million, bringing the total cost of the plan to $13.6 million, but the city said “preliminary work will make tangible changes” with a $3.75 million budget starting this year.
