The Safer Ontario Act not only replaces the 1990 Police Services Act, enhancing public accountability and reporting, updating the police disciplinary process, and identifying new training requirements, it also requires every municipality to come up with a Community Safety and Well-Being Plan, by January 2021.
The plans must identify local risks and determinants of crime, and set out the protocols and responses for police, other emergency responders, and community service providers, strengthening the connections between police and their communities through a collaborative approach.
The Towns of Bradford West Gwillimbury and Innisfil were leading the way, thanks to South Simcoe Police Chief Andrew Fletcher, who helped develop the framework for the plans.
The two municipalities hired consultant Karie Warner to help put together the pieces of the puzzle, and identify local priorities and risk factors by the end of 2019 – with public consultation slated for 2020.
But ‘first out of the gate’ doesn’t mean first across the finish line. The County of Simcoe has now hired Warner to conduct the Community Safety and Well-Being planning for all of its municipalities – a huge task, considering the range of communities involved.
There are positives to the county's engagement, Police Chief Fletcher told the BWG-Innisfil Police Services Board on Monday night, which is mandated to be part of the process.
For one thing, BWG and Innisfil had limited grant money to complete the plan, and would have run out of funding in 2020. Now, said Fletcher, “She’s no longer working on your dime, she’s working on the county dime.” He said, "We shared and we’re happy to share."
And while the whole process has become more “complicated,” said BWG Mayor Rob Keffer, there is also the opportunity for more partnerships with county service providers, including Simcoe County Emergency Management.
“I was thinking – Oh, this is going to bog us down,” agreed Innisfil Mayor Lynn Dollin, pointing out that the county decision to group municipalities by geographic area means that Innisfil and BWG are still working together, as Plan 1, and can proceed.
“I know we were leaps and bounds ahead of everyone at the County, but we all have to cross that finish line,” Dollin said.
“The challenge is not to get bogged down in minutiae, but to keep at that high level,” said Fletcher. “I believe we’re doing it right.”