PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE

 

MINUTES

 

An Open meeting of the Public Safety Committee was held in the Council Chamber, City Hall, 4949 Canada Way, Burnaby, B.C. on Tuesday, 2019 July 16 at 6:00 p.m.

 

1.

CALL TO ORDER

 

 

 

 

PRESENT:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABSENT:

 

 

STAFF:

 

 

 

Councillor Dan Johnston, Chair (arrived at 6:24 p.m.)

Councillor James Wang, Vice Chair

Councillor Joe Keithley, Member

Trustee Larry Hayes, Burnaby Board of Education

Mr. Cory Redekop, Burnaby Board of Trade (arrived at 6:07 p.m.)

Ms. Donna Dawson, Burnaby Crime Prevention Society

Mr. Stephen Baron, Citizens’ Representative

Mr. Lloyd Paul, Citizens’ Representative

Mr. Dave Reid, Citizens’ Representative

Ms. Lisa Bruschetta, Vice Chair District #1 – Hastings/Brentwood

Mr. Aki Ediriweera, Chair District #2 – Burnaby Mountain

Ms. Tazul Nisha Ali, Chair District #3 – Southeast 

Ms. Mary Gates, Chair District #4 – Southwest

 

Councillor Nick Volkow, Member (due to illness)

Ms. Emily Li, Citizens’ Representative

 

Mr. Dave Critchley, Director Public Safety and Community Services

Chief Superintendent Deanne Burleigh, Officer in Charge, RCMP

Sergeant Lorena Rostie, Strategic Planning NCO, RCMP

Ms. Lauren Cichon, Administrative Officer

 

The Vice Chair called the meeting to order at 6:14 p.m.

 

The Vice Chair recognized the ancestral and unceded homelands of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh and traditional hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ speaking people, and extended appreciation for the opportunity to hold a meeting on this shared territory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.

MINUTES

 

 

a)

Minutes of the Open meeting of the Public Safety Committee held on 2019 May 07                                                                           

 

 

MOVED BY TRUSTEE HAYES 

SECONDED BY COUNCILLOR KEITHLEY

 

THAT the minutes of the Open meeting of the Public Safety Committee held on 2019 May 07 be adopted.

 

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

 

3.

PRESENTATION

 

 

a)

Summer Soccer Camp

Presenter: Cst. Tulsi Reddy, Community Programs,

                   Youth Investigative Team                              

 

 

Constable Tulsi Reddy, Community Programs, Youth Investigation Team, appeared before the Committee and provided a PowerPoint presentation on the Burnaby RCMP Soccer Camp (“Soccer Camp”) for youth.

 

The presenter advised the Soccer Camp originated in 2017 by Constable Kwame Amoateng, designed to teach soccer to kids, and build stronger relations between youth and the Burnaby RCMP. 

 

Constable Reddy advised the Soccer Camp originally focused in the Hillside Gardens area, and had approximately 25-35 participants aged 8-13 years old. In 2018, the Soccer Camp had over 80 kids, and was held at Bonsor and Edmonds Parks.

 

The speaker noted kids aged 4-12 are eligible to sign up for the 2019 Soccer Camp, and to date have approximately 70-80 kids enrolled. The camps will take place at Bonsor Park from August 26th to 28th, and at Edmonds Park from August 29th to August 31st for 3 full days from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

 

4.

REPORT

 

 

a)

Report from the Officer in Charge, Burnaby RCMP Detachment

Re: Differential Call Response                                                             

 

 

The Officer in Charge, Burnaby RCMP Detachment, submitted a report requesting support from the Public Safety Committee to implement a pilot program of a Differential Call Response model of responding to calls for service.

The Officer in Charge recommended:

1.            THAT Public Safety Committee recommends Council support for the Burnaby RCMP Detachment to initiate a Differential Call Response model of responding to calls for service.

 

MOVED by TRUSTEE HAYES

SECONDED BY MR. REID

 

THAT the recommendation of the Officer in Charge be adopted.

 

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

 

5.

MONTHLY REPORTS

 

 

a)

District #1 - no submission

 

 

No report was submitted at this time.

 

b)

District #2 - May/June/July 2019

 

 

Mr. Aki Ediriweera, Chair, provided a report of activities that took place in District #2 during May, June and July 2019:

·         CPAC members partook in a Burnaby Future Community safety activity;

·         more round table activities have been planned and further topics will be discussed;

·         members of the community expressed deep concern with an recent firearms related arrest near Cameron Elementary School; and

·         members voted taking the summer off and re-convene in September, as many members are going away throughout the summer.

 

c)

District #3 - May/June 2019

 

 

Ms. Tazul Ali, Chair, provided a report of activities that took place in District #3 during May and June 2019:

·         Constable AJ is involved in a community outreach program - pizza and movie night, with the Hillside Gardens youth. Ms. Ali advised the Constable would like parents participating in the movie night along with the children.

 

d)

District #4 - no submission

 

 

No report was submitted at this time.

 

 

 

 

e)

RCMP - April/May 2019

 

           

Chief Superintendent Deanne Burleigh submitted a report providing an overview of activities that took place during April and May 2019. The Chief Superintendent highlighted the following items:

·         theft from automobiles increased in Districts #1 and #3;

·         automobile theft up in District #1;

·         break and enters in businesses are up in all districts except District #4;

·         residential break and enters are down in all districts;

·         in May, the Burnaby Drug Section wrapped up a six-month long investigation with the arrests of two suspects, and the seizure of over two kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine;

·         Prolific Offender Suppression Team worked alongside other teams within Burnaby detachment to identify a man alleged to have been stealing donation and tip jars, arresting him and submitting a report to Crown Counsel in April;

·         in March, Burnaby Strike Force arrested a suspect alleged to have committed break and enters to businesses in Burnaby and other communities across the Lower Mainland. The suspect was arrested and evidence potentially linking the suspect to the offences was located;

·         an individual suffering from mental health issues and determined to be suicidal barricaded themselves inside a washroom, and set the washroom on fire at a Starbucks location on Kingsway near Metrotown. The individual was arrested under the provisions of the Mental Health Act, and transported to hospital. The Burnaby Fire Department was able to extinguish the fire in the washroom;

·         Community Response Team (CRT) and Bike Section members hosted a Coffee with a Cop event at La Foret Café, located at 6848 Jubliee Avenue;

·         in May, the CRT and Economic Crime unit provided a presentation on Fraud Awareness and Prevention to seniors at the Seton Villa Retirement home;

·         Youth Investigative Team (YIT) members organized an initiative called “Choose Your Ride”, that was held at all eight high schools in the City, and aimed to educate students on making good decisions around grad season;

·         on April 25, YIT and school administrators had approximately 60 parents attend an gathering at Inman Elementary School regarding social media use amongst teens;

·         on May 16, a YIT member and a Crime Intelligence Section member, partnered with the School District, took part in a presentation at Burnaby Central Secondary School for parents to provide awareness regarding the risk of youth involved in gang activities, and gang prevention;

 

·         on May 02 at Metrotown Mall, a male individual was cutting security cables of demonstration phones and attempting to steal them. The suspect was located by the Bike Unit, and was arrested for mischief under $5,000;

·         Restorative Justice program annual referrals are increasing;

·         Victim Services Unit opened 145 files, and provided 130 hours of crisis intervention support in April;

·         Community Police Officer volunteers conducted 100 hours of foot patrols, and over 7,800 vehicles were checked;

·         Annual Officer in Charge awards ceremony was held on May 01, and 60 awards were presented to members, staff, volunteers, a Burnaby Firefighter, and one citizen;

·         auxiliary members contributed 545 hours to community events in April;

·         two Burnaby RCMP members became part of the Alexa Team, and were celebrated at a ceremony at the Justice Institute.

 

The Chief Superintendent advised another Coffee with a Cop event will be taking place at the end of August in the District #2 area.

 

6.

NEW BUSINESS

 

 

Dave Critchley – Emergency Management Program

 

Mr. Dave Critchley, Director Public Safety and Community Services, provided information on the City of Burnaby’s Emergency Management Program.

 

Mr. Critchley noted information is found on the City website, and advised the Community Safety Plan is in the process of being reviewed, and will be provided to the Committee in the future.

 

The Committee requested to share this information with the Burnaby Fire Department, RCMP Detachment, and at cultural events such as the three upcoming events this summer at Swangard Stadium: Chinese Cultural Festival on July 28th, Korean Cultural Heritage Festival on August 3rd, and Seafood Music Festival (Philippine Cultural Heritage Society) on August 10th.

 

Staff undertook to follow up.

 

The Committee inquired how residents can access information if the City website is not accessible.

 

Staff advised there are individual plans in place, depending on the nature of natural disaster (e.g. fire, flood, earthquake), and there would be other resources to get information such as door-to-door, mobile signs etc. In addition, there is an annual Provincial public awareness campaign, and a video on emergency preparedness that will be available to the public in the future.

 

 

7.

INQUIRIES

 

 

Stephen Baron – No Smoking Ban in Parks

 

Mr. Stephen Baron, Citizen’s Representative, inquired regarding the smoking ban in the City’s parks during the summer.

 

Staff advised the City of Burnaby does not have a smoking bylaw, and smoking complaints fall under provincial legislation.

 

The Chair advised the matter is being dealt by the Parks, Recreation and Culture Commission.

 

8.

ADJOURNMENT

 

 

MOVED BY COUNCILLOR WANG

SECONDED BY COUNCILLOR KEITHLEY

 

THAT this Open Committee meeting do now adjourn.

 

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

 

The Open meeting adjourned at 7:22 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

________________________

________________________

Lauren Cichon

ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER                  

Councillor Dan Johnston

CHAIR