February 9, 2021 - Minutes

Date:

Tuesday, February 9, 2021

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Bill McNulty, Chair
Councillor Carol Day (by teleconference)
Councillor Alexa Loo (by teleconference)
Councillor Harold Steves (by teleconference)
Councillor Michael Wolfe (by teleconference)

Also Present:

Councillor Chak Au (by teleconference)

Call to Order:

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

AGENDA ADDITION

It was moved and seconded

That Command Vehicle be added to the agenda as Item No. 6A.

CARRIED

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Community Safety Committee held on January 12, 2021, be adopted.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

March 9, 2021, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers

COMMUNITY SAFETY DIVISION

1.

Community Bylaws Monthly Activity Report – 2020 Year in Review 
(File Ref. No. 12-8060-01) (REDMS No. 6593405)

In reply to queries from the Committee, staff advised that (i) the Transportation Department would be responsible for implementing the suggestion to paint the curb to indicate the required distance between a parked vehicle and a fire hydrant, (ii) City crews place cones around abandoned garbage to secure it if they are unable to pick it up immediately, (iii) complaints about short-term rentals have declined significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (iv) the business licencing program for short-term boarding and lodging is currently focused on legal operations.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Community Bylaws Monthly Activity Report – 2020 in Review”, dated January 12, 2021, from the General Manager, Community Safety, be received for information.

CARRIED

Carli Williams, Manager, Community Bylaws and Licencing, advised that correspondence about the 6560 Buswell Street address is being addressed by the RCMP. It was recommended that Committee members and staff not respond to the correspondence.

2.

Richmond Fire-Rescue Monthly Activity Report – December 2020 
(File Ref. No.) (REDMS No. 6597287)

In reply to queries from the Committee, Fire Chief Tim Wilkinson, Richmond Fire-Rescue offered to investigate and provide information regarding (i) whether the fire hydrant demarcated by a cone on Blundell Road, between No. 6 Road and Sidaway Road, indicates that it is to be relocated, and (ii) the placement of the additional ambulance attendants hired by the BC Ambulance Service.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Richmond Fire-Rescue Monthly Activity Report – December 2020”, dated January 12, 2021, from the Fire Chief, be received for information.

CARRIED

3.

FIRE CHIEF BRIEFING
(Verbal Report)

Item for discussion:

Update on Red Cross Contract

Fire Chief Wilkinson briefed the Committee on the successful transition of volunteers from the Richmond Emergency Support Services program to the Red Cross system in fourth quarter of 2020.

4.

Emergency Programs Quarterly Activity Update – Fourth Quarter 2020 
(File Ref. No. 09-5140-01) (REDMS No. 6604432)

It was moved and seconded

That the staff memorandum titled “Emergency Programs Quarterly Activity Update – Fourth Quarter 2020”, dated January 20, 2021, from the Deputy Fire Chief, be received for information.

CARRIED

5.

RCMP Monthly Activity Report – December 2020 
(File Ref. No. 09-5000-01) (REDMS No. 6583131)

Superintendent Will Ng, Officer in Charge, Richmond RCMP, reviewed statistics from the staff report, noting that (i) there has been a 14% decrease in property crime overall in 2020, (ii) mental health calls for service decreased by 17% in 2020, (iii) domestic violence increase by 36%, of which over half were domestic related assaults on weekends, and (iv) a task force is working on the increase in arsons.

In reply to queries from the Committee, Superintendent Will Ng advised
(i) the reduction in property crime and theft from auto is likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, (ii) the reduction in the number of mental health calls for service is impacted by the support services provided by the Richmond RCMP Mental Health Car to prevent clients from going into crisis and the reduction in the number of calls from service from the Vancouver International Airport (YVR), (iii) the Richmond RCMP Mental Health Car shift pattern will be monitored to ensure that the provision of service continues to correlate with peak hours for calls for service, (iv) a number of actions have been taken in response to the increase in gang activities,
(v) information will be provided on Richmond RCMP Detachment’s participation in the bust of illegal crab traps in Boundary Bay, (vi) hedge fires comprise the majority of the increase in the number of arsons, (vii) the policing presence around modular housing has been increased in response to public concerns about drug use, and (viii) there is a potential to hire police officers that are released from the Surrey RCMP Detachment in the future.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “RCMP Monthly Activity Report – December 2020”, dated January 8, 2021, from the Officer in Charge, Richmond RCMP Detachment, be received for information.

CARRIED

6A.

COMMAND VEHICLE
(Verbal Report)

Discussion took place on options for procurement of the RCMP Command Vehicle and funding options, and as a result the following referral motion was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

That staff report back on options for the procurement of an RCMP Command Vehicle, and to provide fundraising options including community and corporate events.

CARRIED

6.

RCMP/OIC BRIEFING
(Verbal Report)

Item for discussion:

Complaint of Light Pollution

In response to a question from the Committee, staff advised that (i) the City does not currently have a light pollution by-law, and (ii) a citizen’s group is arranging to appear before Council to express their concerns about lighting that is placed on the exterior of housing.

7.

MANAGER’S REPORT

RCMP Outreach Event

Staff reported on the success of the RCMP outreach event that was conducted during the February 6 and 7, 2021 weekend in Hamilton.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:32 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 9, 2021.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Councillor Bill McNulty
Chair

Carol Lee
Recording Secretary