York Region council praised its police service for its proposal to boost the boots hitting the ground in its next budget.
The police force plans to increase its budget by $31.4 million to $484.5 million, and to add 304 new positions over the next two years. This comes with police identifying a rise in crime severity, particularly with motor vehicle thefts and assault, robbery and weapons violations all up in recent years.
Newmarket Deputy Mayor Tom Vegh said that overall, York Region is a safe place compared to other cities, but perception is reality.
“If people are feeling less safe, I’m really glad York Regional Police are not tone deaf to that,” Vegh said, adding that he hopes there is more police visibility. “I would like to see more patrols… that actually does make people feel safe.”
York Region council is reviewing its overall budget in details with plans to approve it in the coming weeks. It voted to receive the police presentation Nov. 7,
With the budget increase, police plan to have 34 new officers split among various investigative crime units, 14 additional officers for hate crimes, bail officers and canines and 23 officers for district operations. Meanwhile, 61 positions will go to administration and 45 positions will be added to executive and board positions like marketing and communications.
At the end of 2023, some regional councillors felt the $18-million increase that York Regional Police asked for was not enough given the community's concern about crime. Councillors expressed that the police should seek to get more officers out there.
York Regional Police chief Jim MacSween said the budget increase this year reflects council priorities.
“Make no mistake, this budget is a game-changer for York Regional Police,” MacSween said.
Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca said it is hard to get calls from residents who have experienced a serious crime.
“The frequency of which I’ve had to have those conversations has been higher than I ever imagined,” he said. “There is a huge psychological and traumatic effect on our residents when they no longer have faith that our communities are as safe as they once were … We’re drawing the line in the sand to say we will make sure …. that our police services have the resources needed.”
Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti thanked the chief but raised questions about how much resources are going into non-officer roles.
“There’s a pretty bleak picture that’s been painted here,” Scarpitti said about crime trends. “When I say residents would be prepared to pay a little more for police, I think they would expect more boots on the ground.”
MacSween said having more civilian roles stands to clear the work from frontline officers so they can be more visible.
The conversation also touched on issues relating to other levels of government. MacSween confirmed that the region only received $300,000 for auto thefts from upper levels of government this year after the federal and provincial governments announced more than $171 million in funding to address auto thefts in the coming years.
Chair and CEO Wayne Emmerson suggested drafting a council resolution on the need for more support.
“We need to tell the province, again and again and again. But the funding is a big issue,” Emmerson said. “We need help going forward with the guns and gangs."
