In light of St. Albert city councillor Ken MacKay looking for more information on the costs of switching to a municipal police force, the Gazette took a deeper look at what happened in Grande Prairie as they are currently deciding to switch to a local force.
Grande Prairie is less than a month removed from its decision to transition to a municipal force and the city expects to be fully removed from the RCMP by 2027.
Grande Prairie Coun. Chris Thiessen, the lone opposition vote against transitioning away from the RCMP, told The Gazette his decision stemmed from hearing community feedback that indicated many residents felt like the decision was being rushed.
“There are benefits to each (policing) system,” Thiessen said, adding, “my position on the day was I thought that we had a strong enough voice from our community that said that they needed to know more.”
“So in the St. Albert case, I would encourage them to continue to research early on and to really examine the costs,” he said.
Grande Prairie's council voted to create a municipal police force on March 6 after two substantial reports commissioned by the city were completed last year, which found “there is concern that the existing municipal policing arrangement with the RCMP may not be viable in the future due to the larger RCMP organization's challenges in providing a high level of contract policing services to a municipality the size of Grande Prairie.”
Following the release of the initial report last October, Grande Prairie hired a consultant to develop a policing transition plan, which was then approved on March 6.
The transition plan cites “increased local oversight and efficiency, increased community sensitivity and responsiveness, direct accountability to the community and taxpayers, improved officer retention based on stronger community ties, (and) overall financial transparency and viability” as benefits of a municipal police service.
Currently, as in St. Albert, the federal government covers 10 per cent of Grande Prairie's annual RCMP cost, while the remaining 90 per cent is covered through the annual city budget.
“These service costs include operating and maintenance costs such as salaries, benefits and indirect costs, transportation and equipment, professional services, repairs, utilities, supplies, and miscellaneous operational expenses,” the plan report says.
In 2022, the RCMP cost the City of Grande prairie nearly $31.5 million, an increase of almost $3.5 million compared to the year before and an increase of almost $5 million compared to 2018.
According to the report's estimates, when the municipal police service is fully transitioned in 2028, Grande Prairie can expect to pay $33.8 million for policing. The current estimate for transition capital costs for Grande Prairie is $19 million, which the Alberta government has pledged to cover $9.7 million of.
During Grande Prairie's March 6 council meeting, Mayor Jackie Clayton and all but one councillor voted in favour of creating a municipal force, citing issues with officer retention, community engagement, and bureaucracy. Mayor Clayton was unavailable for an interview.
St. Albert officer in charge, Insp. Ryan Comaniuk said St. Albert's RCMP detachment has not experienced any issues with officer retention in recent years, although recruitment nationwide has been difficult.
“Employee retention is a complex issue with many factors; the biggest of which is competition from other police services,” he said.
