September 10, 2013 - Minutes

Date:

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Derek Dang, Chair
Councillor Linda McPhail
Councillor Evelina Halsey-Brandt
Councillor Bill McNulty

Absent:

Councillor Ken Johnston

Call to Order:

The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Community Safety Committee held on Tuesday, July 9, 2013, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

Wednesday, October 16, 2013, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room

LAW AND COMMUNITY SAFETY DEPARTMENT

1.

RCMP's Monthly Report – June 2013 Activities
File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 3917435)

RCMP's Monthly Report – July 2013 Activities
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 3934297)

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the report titled RCMP’s Monthly Report – June 2013 Activities (dated September 1, 2013, from the Officer in Charge, RCMP) be received for information; and

(2)

That the report titled RCMP’s Monthly Report – July 2013 Activities (dated September 1, 2013, from the Officer in Charge, RCMP) be received for information.

CARRIED

2.

City Centre Community Police Station Update
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 3921513)

Superintendant Renny Nesset, Officer in Charge, Richmond RCMP, provided an update on two recent serious accidents in Richmond.

In reply to a query from Committee, Victor Wei, Director, Transportation, advised that staff are working with the Richmond RCMP and awaiting a complete RCMP report regarding the accident involving a cyclist prior to identifying any road safety improvements.

It was moved and seconded

That the report titled City Centre Community Police Station Update (dated August 29, 2013 from the Officer in Charge, RCMP) be received for information.

CARRIED

3.

Richmond Fire-Rescue – June 2013 Activity Report
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 3916273)

Richmond Fire-Rescue – July 2013 Activity Report
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 3950314)

Fire Chief John McGowan, Richmond Fire-Rescue (RFR), commented on June 2013 and July 2013 statistics, noting that RFR saw an increase in outdoor fires, which can likely be attributed to the dry weather.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the staff report titled Richmond Fire-Rescue – June 2013 Activity Report, dated August 26, 2013, from the Fire Chief, Richmond Fire-Rescue, be received for information; and

(2)

That the staff report titled Richmond Fire-Rescue – July 2013 Activity Report, dated August 26, 2013, from the Fire Chief, Richmond Fire-Rescue, be received for information.

CARRIED

4.

Community Bylaws – June 2013 Activity Report
(File Ref. No. 12-8060-01) (REDMS No. 3903896 v.11)

Community Bylaws – July 2013 Activity Report
(File Ref. No. 12-8060-01) (REDMS No. 3939884 v.8)

In reply to a query regarding the People With Disabilities parking decal initiative, Edward Warzel, Manager, Community Bylaws, advised that staff have seen a decrease in the number of information calls regarding the program since its launch in June 2013.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the staff report titled Community Bylaws – June 2013 Activity Report dated August 26, 2013, from the General Manager, Law & Community Safety be received for information; and

(2)

That the staff report titled Community Bylaws – July 2013 Activity Report dated August 26, 2013, from the General Manager, Law & Community Safety be received for information.

CARRIED

5.

Touchstone Family Services Restorative Justice Contract Renewal
(File Ref. No.) (REDMS No. 3958428)

Anne Stevens, Senior Manager, Community Safety Policy & Programs, provided background information regarding the proposed contract renewal for the Restorative Justice Program with the Touchstone Family Association.

In reply to query from the Chair, Supt. Nesset advised that the Richmond RCMP is committed to the Restorative Justice Program.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the City enter into a three year contract (2014-2016) with Touchstone Family Association for the provision of the Restorative Justice Program, as outlined in the staff report titled Touchstone Family Services Restorative Justice Contract Renewal dated August 21, 2013 from the General Manager, Law and Community Safety; and

(2)

That the Chief Administrative Officer and General Manager, Law and Community Safety be authorized to execute the contract with Touchstone Family Association.

CARRIED

6.

FIRE CHIEF BRIEFING
(Verbal Report) 

Items for discussion:

(i)

Smoke Alarm Program

Fire Chief McGowan highlighted that RFR has partnered with the Minoru Activity Centre and Vancouver Coastal Health to install free smoke alarms to vulnerable members of the community that have been identified as being at risk for not having a working smoke alarm in their residences.

(ii)

Fire Prevention Week

Fire Chief McGowan advised that ‘Kitchen Fires’ is the theme for the 2013 Fire Prevention Week taking place from October 7 to October 11, 2013.

(iii)

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Fire Chief McGowan stated that RFR members will be wearing pink shirts and pink medical gloves throughout the month of October in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

(iv)

Community Bulletin – Fires in Hedges and Outdoor Property

Fire Chief McGowan spoke of a community bulletin on the dangers of carelessly disposing cigarettes and smoking materials near areas with bark mulch, noting that RFR responded to 45 outdoor fires this past summer.

(v)

Joint Update with Emergency Programs – Get Ready Richmond

Deborah Procter, Manager, Emergency Programs, spoke of Get Ready Richmond and distributed information regarding upcoming free Emergency Preparedness Workshops (copy on file, City Clerk’s Office).

(vi)

Joint Update with RCMP – Summer Camps

Fire Chief McGowan, accompanied by Supt. Nesset spoke of the success of the RFR & RCMP Summer Camps.

7.

RCMP/OIC BRIEFING
(Verbal Report)

Item for discussion:

(i)

RCMP Musical Ride

Supt. Nesset commented on the success of the RCMP Musical Ride, noting that the event was well attended and well received.

8.

MANAGER’S REPORT

(i)

Emergency Programs – July Training & October Exercise

Ms. Procter noted that a tabletop exercise conducted in July 2013 identified areas in which further preparation was needed for staff during an actual earthquake; therefore, following the Great British Columbia ShakeOut in October 2013, a functional Emergency Operations Centre will be set up simulating the aftermath of an earthquake.

(ii)

Law & Community Safety Department Updates

Phyllis Carlyle, General Manager, Law & Community Safety Department, provided the following updates regarding the Law & Community Safety Department:

§   

Staff Solicitor May Leung is the recipient of an International Municipal Lawyers Association Canadian Scholarship;

§   

staff are analyzing the figures in the RCMP’s Integrated Team Annual Report 2012/2013; and

§   

the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) has appointed Mayor Brodie to the British Columbia Local Government Contract Management Committee.

Ms. Carlyle then updated Committee on discussions that recently took place at the Mayors’ Consultative Forum and commented on (i) the costs, per member, associated with the Green Timbers facility, (ii) the financial implications of the RCMP severance payouts as well as the financial implications of the increase in pension rates, (iii) the development of a Real Time Intelligence Centre, and (iv) an audit of the Police Records Information Management Environment system.

(iii)

Speed Limits in Richmond

Councillor McPhail referenced an article from the Vancouver Sun dated September 10, 2013 (copy on file, City Clerk’s Office) about cycling in Richmond and commented on the City of Victoria’s resolution submitted to UBCM regarding lowering the default speed limit (copy on file, City Clerk’s Office).

Discussion ensued regarding speed limits throughout Richmond and staff was requested to provide information on the City’s jurisdiction over speed limits and an arterial road map identifying roads under the City’s jurisdiction and those under the Province’s jurisdiction.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:50 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, September 10, 2013.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Councillor Derek Dang
Chair

Hanieh Berg
Committee Clerk