Improved police presence in the city is one of the most effective ways to prevent crime, say the city’s chief of police.
The Thunder Bay Police Service released its business plan for 2012-2014 Tuesday, outlining their top four priorities. The plan was approved unanimously by the board. Chief J.P. Levesque said a visible police service is the best way to engage in crime prevention - one of the four areas outlined in the plan.
“I’ve always said that one of my goals is to keep officers on the road,” he said, adding they have several projects already in the works.
One is to reduce the amount of time officers spend on paperwork in the station through a new records management system.
The force is also examining the possibility of having cell phones in patrol cars so officers can dictate their reports and not have to return to the station to fill out a form.
Levesque said they also plan to work with other organizations and corporations, like they have been working with Mac’s Convenience Stores, to reduce crimes.
“We will continue to develop crime prevention strategies, not just within the service but certainly externally with our partners and groups like the Crime Prevention Council,” he said.
With an increasing Aboriginal population, one of the plan’s priorities is to engage with the Aboriginal community to address safety and policing issues, particularly working on ways to protect the youth.
Communication and engagement of the public is also a priority in the plan as well as the maintaining a respected and effective work force.
“We would like to improve our image, come across as very positive, not only as a police service but as an employer as well,” said the chief. “It’s a great profession to be in. We want to attract good people to it.”
Part of improving the force’s image with the public is to become more open and transparent.
“I think people in this community expect their police service to be transparent as much as possible,” Levesque said, adding the police will also start looking at crime prevention on a neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood basis.
Mayor Keith Hobbs supports the plan and was pleased with the neighbourhood policing initiative.
“It’s something the whole neighbourhood can share in and help solve the issues in their own community,” he said. “You can’t police without the public.”
“I think that’s going to go a long way to helping the city,” he said.
The plan was formed with input from the school boards, city council, various service groups and the police services board.
Levesque said it’s been a lengthy process that started last fall and they had to whittle the number of priorities down to just four.
“You don’t want a document that is too big, too expansive, because it becomes unrealistic,” he said.
The chief will give updates to the board on the status of the business plan on at least an annual basis for the next three years.
