Policing annexed areas will cost $4.3M a year: EPS

Edmonton police want $4.3 million extra a year to enforce the law in new lands to be annexed from Leduc County.

In a report Thursday for council’s community services committee, police officials warn if they don’t get enough money for 25 new officer positions, policing in other areas of the southwest and southeast will suffer.

Either that, or they won’t police annexed areas to the same standard and Edmonton will have a two-tired policing system.

The province hasn’t approved Edmonton’s annexation bid yet, but police say they need 18 months to train recruits to be ready.

The numbers sound “a little inflated, but we do need extra police,” Coun. Moe Banga, a former Edmonton police detective, said Thursday.

“We don’t want to take (officers) out of existing areas,” said Banga, who represents the deep southeast. “In Ward 12, we’re already challenged.”

Coun. Tim Cartmell, who represents Ward 9 in the southwest, said he also hears concerns about increased break-ins and petty crimes from residents, especially south of the Anthony Henday. But he said he wants to ask questions about police funding across the city.

“Are we matching the resources to the task?” he said, bringing up an idea from one of his competitors during the recent election campaign.

Payman Parseyan advocated using community peace officers for traffic enforcement, similar to how the province uses sheriffs on highways. That would free up police officers for more serious crime.

“Conceptually, it’s a question,” said Cartmell, saying he’ll have many questions to ask Monday when the report comes up for debate.

He’s also not opposed to the idea of a two-tiered system, at least temporarily: “They have RCMP now. Maybe a different model for that area, for the moment, is perfectly appropriate.”

Police officials said they need 25 officers based on citywide response time standards.

Twenty officers would be needed for patrols in the southwest and southeast divisions, plus two traffic enforcement officers to patrol Highway 19 and three additional officers for specialized units such as canine, tactical and forensics.

Edmonton submitted its annexationbidtotheprovinceonSept.28 for 8,857 hectares south of the city. That includes land agreed to by Leduc County and nine quarter sections the Town of Beaumont recently annexed from the county.

Edmonton and Leduc County requested an annexation effective date of January 2019.

We don’t want to take (police officers) out of existing areas. In Ward 12, we’re already challenged.