February 12, 2019 - Minutes

Date:

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Bill McNulty, Chair
Councillor Alexa Loo
Councillor Carol Day
Councillor Kelly Greene

Absent:

Councillor Harold Steves

Also Present:

Councillor Chak Au
Councillor Michael Wolfe

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 January 15, 2019, be adopted.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

March 12, 2019, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room

COMMUNITY SAFETY DIVISION

1.

Community Bylaws Monthly Activity Report – December 2018 
(File Ref. No. 12-8060-01) (REDMS No. 6078589 v. 3)

In reply to queries from Committee, Carli Williams, Manager, Community Bylaws and Licencing, advised that (i) an unsightly property on Beckwith Road has been resolved, (ii) the increase in noise complaints can be attributed to a number of challenging construction sites, and (iii) the number of grease-trap inspections is consistent with staff’s education and voluntary compliance efforts.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Community Bylaws Monthly Activity Report – December 2018”, dated February 5, 2019, from the General Manager, Community Safety, be received for information.

CARRIED

2.

Business Licences Quarterly Report – Fourth Quarter 2018 
(File Ref. No. 12-8275-01) (REDMS No. 6078510)

In reply to queries from Committee, Ms. Williams commented on a local business that may be seeking to operate an adult entertainment establishment.  She spoke to the City’s and provincial government’s regulations for such establishments, noting that staff are monitoring the situation closely.  Also, Ms. Williams remarked that staff are working with the City Clerk’s Office on ameliorating the Election and Political Signs Bylaw No. 8713.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Business Licences Quarterly Report – Fourth Quarter 2018”, dated January 21, 2019, from the General Manager Community Safety be received for information.

CARRIED

3.

Emergency Programs Quarterly Activity Report- Fourth Quarter 2018 
(File Ref. No. 09-5126-01) (REDMS No. 6094573 v. 4)

Discussion took place and Committee commented that (i) information reflective of the community’s interest in the Richmond Resilient Community Program would be valuable, (ii) it may be worthwhile for Council to participate in an earthquake drill, particularly to become better familiar with their role during an emergency, and (iii) it would be timely to provide Council with updated materials regarding emergency preparedness and their role.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Emergency Programs Quarterly Activity Report – Fourth Quarter 2018”, dated January 21, 2019, from the General Manager, Community Safety, be received for information.

CARRIED

4.

Richmond Fire-Rescue Monthly Activity Report – December 2018 
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 6076052)

In reply to queries from Committee, Fire Chief Tim Wilkinson, Richmond Fire-Rescue (RFR), provided the following information:

§   

the drop in medical calls may be attributed to the change in response model implemented by BC Emergency Health Services;

§   

BC Emergency Health Services continuously reviews the response model and adjustments are made as necessary;

§   

municipal level fire departments across BC are limited in their scope of medical response; and

§   

Richmond is well served by ambulances unlike communities in the rural areas of the province.

Councillor Day spoke to the potential in enhancing RFR’s role with regard to medical calls in an effort to better serve the community; she stated that it would be worthwhile to write to the provincial government to enquire about the potential to grant Fire-Rescue personnel the ability to perform basic paramedic duties to support BC Ambulance Service (BCAS), and to seek funding from the provincial government to train RFR personnel and for the City’s additional operating costs.

The Chair spoke to the political climate of relations between the provincial government and BCAS, noting that it may be untimely to interfere.

Fire Chief Wilkinson stated that RFR’s primary role is to fight fires and cautioned the expansion of RFR’s role, noting that provincial funding support is highly unlikely.  Fire Chief Wilkinson suggested that should Council write to the provincial government on this matter, it may be more appropriate to query about the potential for the Emergency Health Services Act to be permissive; this would provide municipalities the flexibility to choose an emergency health services model that best suits the needs of their individual communities.

Cecilia Achiam, General Manager, Community Safety, commented on the costs implications related to an increase of fire personnel, noting that it would be imprudent of staff to recommend an expansion in the scope of RFR’s duties.

Discussion took place on the current response model, and Committee queried whether there is a need to potentially expand on RFR’s role.  Fire Chief Wilkinson advised that data regarding calls not routed to RFR may possibly be obtained by Freedom of Information requests.

Committee requested that additional figures be provided with regard to RFR’s overtime hours and stand down calls.

As a result of the discussion, the following motion was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

That a letter be written to the Minister of Health enquiring about the potential to grant Fire-Rescue personnel the ability to perform basic paramedic duties to support BC Ambulance Service, and to seek funding from the provincial government to train Richmond Fire-Rescue personnel and for the City’s additional operating costs, with copies to the Premier of BC and the Federal Minister of Health.

CARRIED

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Richmond Fire-Rescue Monthly Activity Report – December 2018”, dated January 14, 2019, from the Fire Chief, Richmond Fire-Rescue, be received for information.

CARRIED

5.

FIRE CHIEF BRIEFING
(Verbal Report)

(i)

Anti-bullying / Pink Shirt Day

Fire Chief Wilkinson spoke to the upcoming ERASE Bullying Day on February 27^th, highlighting that RFR will be participating in the campaign.

(ii)

Touchstone Family Association – Eating Together Event

Fire Chief Wilkinson remarked that on February 24^th, RFR Local 1286 will be serving a pancake breakfast at DeBeck Elementary school as part of the Touchstone Family Association’s Eating Together event.

(iii)

Joint RFR & RCMP Response in West Richmond

Fire Chief Wilkinson, accompanied by Supt. Will Ng, Officer in Charge, Richmond RCMP, spoke to a recent event on Princeton Avenue, which led to the discovery of a clandestine drug lab.

6.

RCMP Monthly Activity Report – December 2018 
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 6052135 v. 3)

Supt. Ng provided commented on the RCMP’s December 2018 figures and highlighted that (i) the Detachment realigned additional resources to combat property crime, (ii) the Mobile Enforcement Team has been actively targeting hot spot transit hubs like Canada Line stations, and (iii) the police dog unit has responded favourably to service calls in Richmond.

In reply to queries from Committee, Supt. Ng spoke to the City’s Block Watch program, highlighting that the program has 455 groups, totalling 10,477 participants (552 captains and co-captains).  He commented on neighbourhoods where the program is thriving, noting that captains of the program will be invited to participate in a workshop where best practices may be shared.

Committee requested that a memorandum be provided to Council with regard to neighbourhoods that do not participate in the Block Watch program.

Edward Warzel, Manager, Police Services, spoke on the upcoming launch of a Richmond RCMP mobile application, noting that the application supports additional features that may be integrated at a future time.

In reply to further queries from Committee, Supt. Ng advised that the increase in sexual offences can be attributed to child pornography cases intercepted by Canada Border Services Agency at the Vancouver International Airport, and statistics specific to Zone 1 (Sea Island) can be provided to Council.

It was moved and seconded

That the report titled “RCMP Monthly Activity Report – December 2018”, dated January 21, 2019, from the Officer in Charge, Richmond RCMP Detachment, be received for information.

CARRIED

7.

RCMP/OIC BRIEFING
(Verbal Report)

(i)

Community Break and Enter Outreach

Supt. Ng remarked that statistically break and enters rise in the months of December and January and typically decline once prolific offenders are in custody.  He then highlighted that as a result of intelligence-led data, RCMP officers now attend targeted areas impacted by break and enters at specific times in an effort to be visible and prevent crime.

(ii)

Road Safety Initiative

Supt. Ng reviewed the statistics related to road safety initiatives, remarking that the various teams have been very active.

(iii)

Online Crime Reporting

Supt. Ng highlighted that the Richmond RCMP is part of a pilot project, whereby members of the public may report a non-emergency crime online.

(iv)

Youth Mental Health

Supt. Ng spoke of a recent event that has led the Richmond RCMP to examine ways in which youth mental health may be better supported.  He spoke to the Car 67 program, noting that an agreement with Vancouver Coastal Health is nearly complete and that staff are examining the potential to include a youth mental health officer as part of the program.

Discussion took place and Committee expressed concern regarding the rise of self-harm among youth and the need to (i) advocate for additional resources that benefit youth, and (ii) the potential to implement an age restriction on the use of social media.

As a result of the discussion, the following motion was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

That a letter be written to appropriate federal and provincial authorities to examine the effects of social media use and possible protections that may be implemented to safeguard youth.

The question on the motion was not called as discussion took place on a potential workshop whereby stakeholders, such as the City of Richmond, Richmond School District, Vancouver Coastal Health, the Richmond RCMP and so forth, meet to discuss youth mental health in Richmond.

The question on the motion was then called and it was CARRIED.

8.

COMMITTEE STANDING ITEM

E-Comm

None.

9.

MANAGER’S REPORT

None.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (5:31 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, February 12, 2019.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Councillor Bill McNulty
Chair

Hanieh Berg
Legislative Services Coordinator