MINUTES

1.

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Community Safety Committee held on Tuesday, May 13^th, 2003, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

2.

The next meeting of the Committee will be held on Tuesday, July 15^th, 2003 at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room.

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting of the Community Safety Committee scheduled to be held on Tuesday, August 12^th, 2003, be cancelled.

CARRIED

COMMUNITY SAFETY COMMITTEE ADVISORY TASK FORCE

3.

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Community Safety Committee Advisory Task Force held on May 13^th, 2003, be received for information.

CARRIED

It was moved and seconded

That the order of the agenda be varied to deal with Item No. 6 immediately following Item No. 4, and that the open meeting be recessed and a closed meeting held following the conclusion of the Police Chief Briefing.

CARRIED

COMMUNITY SAFETY DIVISION

4.

Police Chief Briefing
(Oral Report)  (30 Minutes in duration)

Corporal Steve Goss, of the Richmond Detachment of the RCMP, provided an overview on the current counterfeit and fraud situation in Richmond.

It was moved and seconded

That the open meeting recess until after the conclusion of the closed Committee meeting (4:23 p.m.).

CARRIED

The open meeting reconvened at 4:46 p.m., with all members of the Committee, Mayor Brodie and Cllr. Howard present.

6.

EMERGENCY SOCIAL SERVICES/VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT COORDINATOR
(Report:  Mar. 17/03, File No.:  1810-01) (REDMS No. 1018107)
 

The Manager, Emergency & Environmental Programs, Suzanne Bycraft, reviewed the report with the Committee.  Discussion ensued among Committee members and staff on:

the availability of grant opportunities, if any, to help offset costs

the statutory requirements imposed by the Provincial Government that the City develop an Emergency Social Services plan, and the risk to the City if the position was not filled and an emergency event occurred which required the City to seek funding from the Provincial Government

whether the position could be filled within existing staff levels

the rationale for removing the position from the recommended list of additional level requests

whether the position would be exempt or unionized.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the position of Emergency Social Services/Volunteer Management Coordinator be created, and
 

(2)

That program funding for 2003, in the amount of $42,500, be approved from the 2003 Council Provision Account.

The question on the motion was not called, as discussion continued on whether the proposed recommendation should be supported.  Cllrs. Barnes, E. Halsey-Brandt and S. Halsey-Brand supported the creation of the position, citing its importance in the implementation of the City's Emergency Social Services Plan.  Cllr. Howard indicated that although he was not permitted to vote on the recommendation, he supported the creation of the position.

Cllr. McNulty stated that it was his belief that the proposal had not been thoroughly examined and therefore, he was unable to support the recommendation.  He suggested that the matter should be delayed for a month to determine if there was an individual within the City who had the appropriate skills to fill the position, and to allow the Chief Administrative Officer to review the situation.  Mayor Brodie commented that while it was an important position, he was not convinced that the position could not be filled within existing levels, rather than approving an expenditure from the Council Provision Account.

Questions were raised about the feasibility of only approving Part (1) of the recommendation and delaying the approval of funding for the position to determine if there was a qualified individual within the City, and the impact which this could have on the position.  Advice was given that adoption of Part (1) of the recommendation would result in the establishment of a PCC number for the position, and would allow staff to develop a job description and to determine whether or not there was a qualified person within the City.  Further advice was given that funding, or the transfer of funds from an existing position, could be considered at a later date.

Discussion continued, with Cllr. Dang indicating that while he agreed that the position was important, he felt that a decision should be delayed until the Chief Administrative Officer had had the opportunity to review the matter.

At the conclusion of the discussion, the request was made that the recommendations be dealt with separately.

The question on Part (1) of the main motion was not called, as the following amendment was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

That Part (1) of the main motion be amended by adding the following to the end of the sentence, subject to the comments of the Chief Administrative Officer upon his arrival.

DEFEATED ON A TIED VOTE

OPPOSED:  Cllr. Barnes
E. Halsey-Brandt
S. Halsey-Brandt

The question on Part (1) of the main motion was then called, and it was DEFEATED ON A TIED VOTE with Mayor Brodie, and Cllrs. Dang and McNulty opposed.

It was moved and seconded

That the matter of the creation and funding of the Emergency Social Services/Volunteer Management Coordinator position be referred to the Chief Administrative Officer and staff upon the arrival of the Chief Administrative Officer in the City for review and report to Committee before the end of July, 2003.

DEFEATED ON A TIED VOTE

OPPOSED:  Cllr. Barnes
E. Halsey-Brandt
S. Halsey-Brandt

The question on Part (2) of the main motion was not called, as the following amended motion was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

That program funding for 2003, in the amount of $30,000, be approved from the 2003 Council Provision Account.

DEFEATED ON A TIED VOTE

OPPOSED:  Mayor Brodie
Cllr. Dang

McNulty

The Chair advised that the matter would be submitted to Council without a recommendation from the Committee.

Mayor Brodie and Cllrs. E. Halsey-Brandt and Howard left the meeting at 5:23 p.m., and did not return.

5.

SAFE COMMUNITIES FOUNDATION
(Report:  May 29/03, File No.:  0100-20-CSPA1-01) (REDMS No. 1015439)

The Manager, Community Safety Planning, Shawn Issel, introduced the Chair of the Community Safety Advisory Task Force, Bob Aldcorn, who reviewed the report with the Committee.  In response to questions, the following information was provided:

the Safe Communities Foundation encouraged cities to set up goals and objectives which helped to make a community safer

the Community Safety Advisory Task Force was working towards the development of goals, and staff were working on a number of projects, including the Home Safe Program, the Virtual Safety Village, meetings with the community about street racing and marijuana grow ops, which would fit with the format suggested by the Safe Communities Foundation

staff involvement (i.e. Manager, Community Safety Planning) would require approximately one day a month Ms. Issels current allocation of time

one of the components of the Safe Communities Foundation was the ability to connect with the business community and to seek sponsorships from that group

the Safe Communities Foundation Regional Coordinator would most likely provide assistance to the City to seek sponsorships and develop a business plan

at the present time, there was no local involvement with the Safe Communities Foundation, however the Community Safety Advisory Task Force was endeavouring to build a relationship with the Foundation

the Safe Communities Foundation was a national organization which was becoming well recognized across Canada but did not yet have any communities in British Columbia designated as safe communities; Richmond could have the distinction of being the first community in BC to achieve that designation.
 

In concluding the discussion, the Chair commented that the steps taken by the City to date would seem to meet a number of the criteria established by the Safe Communities Foundation.

It was moved and seconded

That the Community Safety Advisory Task Force investigate the establishment of a Safe Communities Foundation in Richmond.

CARRIED

URBAN DEVELOPMENT DIVISION

7.

HAMILTON & SEA ISLAND COMMUNITY SAFETY BUILDINGS PUBLIC ART PROJECT
(Report:  May 29/03, File No.:  7000-09-20-030) (REDMS No. 1014209)

Senior Planner Kari Huhtala, advised that he was available to answer any questions which the Committee might have.  Discussion then ensued among Committee members and staff on how each project would maintain a common theme, during which the Chair stressed the importance of ensuring that the criteria and the theme were made known to the artists.  Information was also provided by Mr. Huhtala on the timing of (i) the selection of the artists for the projects, (ii) development of the designs in consultation with each neighbourhood, and (iii) the report to Council, which should occur prior to Christmas of this year. 

Also discussed was the need to ensure that each communitys input was respected by the artists, and how each communitys input would be sought through their respective community associations.  In response to questions, Mr. Huhtala confirmed that the artists proposals would be presented to Council for approval prior to implementation.

It was moved and seconded

That an allocation of $51,000 be endorsed from the Public Art Project Account (#40802), originally approved in the 2001 Capital Plan, for the development of public art projects as part of the new Hamilton and Sea Island Community Safety Buildings, (as outlined in the report dated May 29^th, 2003, from the Manager, Policy Planning).

CARRIED

8.

MANAGERS REPORT

Grow Op Workshop Ms. Issel referred to a memorandum which she circulated to all members of Council regarding a Grow Ops Strategy, and stated that she was available to respond to questions.  There were none.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (5:50 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Community Safety Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Tuesday, June 10^th, 2003.

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Councillor Linda Barnes
Chair

Fran J. Ashton
Executive Assistant, City Clerks Office