A Town of Westlock police force could cost the municipality at least $500,000.
John Shoemaker, town councillor and town representative on the Police Consultation Committee, said the $500,000 estimate is based on paying 70 per cent of costs for five officers at $150,000 each. And if the federal census determines the town’s population is 5,000, the municipality will have to pay its own policing costs.
“But then we also have to pay for rent and we also have to pay for overtime and admin staff,” he said. “We came up with a number somewhere in the range of about $900,000, and you get a small grant of $200,000 plus so many dollars per capita.”
Shoemaker said he had not heard back from RCMP ‘K’ Division about the number of officers the town would need, so the estimate may change.
“This was based on five officers,” he said. “What if it’s six now? I don’t know. What if they don’t have a full complement? Everywhere is short so maybe we won’t have five.”
He explained that even though the local detachment should have 10 or so officers, it might not have that many if they are sick, on leave or have been transferred. And the town won’t necessarily see cost savings if the detachment is short.
“If they’re short of members, guess what, the other guys work more overtime so you’re paying time-and-a-half for those guys,” he said. “If you’re a little short of members, it doesn’t guarantee you’re going to save $150,000 a guy.”
Although Shoemaker estimated policing would cost the town at least $500,000, that number did not take into account photo radar revenue. As Shoemaker explained, revenue from photo radar would go into the municipality’s general revenue line, but can’t be used specifically to offset policing costs. Municipalities with populations over 5,000 people are allowed to bring in photo radar.
Shoemaker spoke with four other communities and was told their revenue from photo radar varied from $80,000 to $120,000.
“Edson, they make a pile of money because there’s a major highway going through there, but some of the other places, and these are the guys I talked to, and some of them said you might make $120(K), some said you might make $80(K), so I went with the lowball number,” he noted.
The other issue is that the province takes a 20 to 30 per cent cut for certain driving infractions, so the town would not get all the ticket revenue.
Shoemaker said the town has the option of operating its own photo radar system and keeping all the revenue from that, but would end up paying equipment, training, and invoicing. The other option is to contract out, although no decisions will be made until the census numbers are released.
“If that third party came in, they would run all the equipment, they would do the billings, they would give us the cheques. Do we want to do the work or do we want them to do it?”
