(This
column was published in the North
Shore News on
Nov. 4, 1998)
Police
services undermined
By Leo Knight
VANCOUVER
City Council wants to give the police an additional $3.6 million
for a dedicated squad and the police board has so far rejected
the offer.
The
reason for the rejection is unclear, but while Vancouver Police
Board members wrestle with the new offer from city council and
police chief Bruce Chambers it is clear they are uncomfortable
with the way money is being spent.
Let's
look at what we do know.
Last
week the mayor steered through council a recommendation to raise
taxes by 1% to fund extra policing in the downtown eastside,
known as the "skids" to those who earn their living in
those mean streets.
Initially
the resolution was to provide an extra 40 officers, primarily on
foot, in the area. The officers involved are supposed to be
dedicated to the skids and the open wheeling and dealing of
heroin and cocaine which have combined to turn the area into a
latter day Dodge City.
Why
the police board, of which Mayor Phillip Owen is a member, is
balking at the proposal is the real question.
Much
is going on behind the scenes in the province's largest police
department, trying to cope with the restructuring conceived by
the new chief within a few months of his installment last year.
On
June 2 he ordered the movement of all affected personnel in the
reorganization. The cost of this decision is still being added
up. Extra overtime alone is costing an estimated $30,000 per
month, according to a senior officer who requested anonymity.
Sources
in the department are suggesting there will be a financial
shortfall this fiscal year of approximately $1.17 million. This
was confirmed to me by city hall.
It's
interesting to note that is exactly the figure proposed cuts to
the department would save in next year's budget. Although, I am
assured by a very reliable source there is no connection between
the two figures.
On
Oct. 22, to meet the overall budget cuts requested by council,
the chief proposed axing one deputy chief (of the three
remaining from his last reorganization), five inspectors (say
goodbye to the road supervisors) and seven sergeants (the
quality control positions just added this year in the last
reorganization).
Rumours
are running rampant in the morale-challenged police department
these days. There's talk of the marine squad being disbanded and
the patrol boats sold. You know those guys on horseback in
Stanley Park? Soon to be guys on bikes apparently.
At
least, those were extra suggested cuts by Chief Chambers which
were ultimately not addressed by city council, but remain on the
table as the financial problems seem to multiply.
I
have to say at this point that the police department was asked
by city hall to reduce its budget approximately 1%, the same as
every other department within the city structure. It gets very
confusing when you find out the budget is actually being
increased from $109.3 million to $112.3 million. Evidently that
increase in real dollars cannot maintain the status quo when
inflation is factored in.
The
confusion is increased by council's approval of an additional
$3.6 million, a one time allotment, to provide the 40-man squad
to tackle the problems on the downtown eastside.
On
the one hand the police have to cut their budget and are doing
it by eliminating positions. On the other hand, they are being
given an extra allotment to increase the size of the department
by 20 positions to make up half of the 40-man squad.
Got
it?
Then
there is the question of the authorized strength of the
department itself. The number is supposed to be 1,149. The new
money from council will increase that to 1,169. The 40-man
"skid" squad is supposed to come from that total. But
I am told that the actual number of police officers in the city
is approximately 1,129, 20 short of the authorized strength.
Coupled
that with officers off duty on long-term sick leave and assorted
other matters and the shortage is almost 100 officers. Many of
these officers are currently allocated to various squads'
operational strength creating the so-called "ghost
squads" -- squads of supposedly operational officers that
just aren't there.
According
to one police officer, there are over 20 unfilled sergeants'
positions in the current structure.
It's
probable the real reason the police board is balking at the new
request is because it believes council is intruding on its
sacred ground and trying to run the department.
But
the confusion created by budget shortfalls, politics and
questionable decisions has taken its toll and the board is
trying to come to grips with the overall situation.
Whatever
the reason, and the police board is not saying what it is, the
problem in the "skids" is getting worse by the day.
The
shortage of officers in the city means a reduction of services
to all of us who live in, work in or otherwise use the city of
Vancouver. And that means virtually all of us.
I
have been talking to a number of people, including the city
manager Ken Dobell, to try to sort out all the numbers. It's
still not clear to me what is going on.
Is anyone in charge of this mess? Mayor Owen? Chief Chambers? The police board? The attorney general? Anyone?
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