Want more cops downtown? That's going to cost you, police chief says

If Saultites want more police attention paid to the city's downtown, they're going to have to pony up more cash for more cops, Police Chief Hugh Stevenson told Monday night's City Council meeting.

"If we wanted to address the downtown core issues more directly, that would take an increase in FTEs (full-time equivalent staffing)," Stevenson said in response to a question about downtown problems from Ward 4 Coun. Rick Niro.

"The reality of policing today is that when you have a Bill C-75 that gives you circular justice, when there's a lack of deterrent in the criminal justice system, when there's no long-term treatment, what it means is we end up dealing with the same person four, five, up to 33 times on recalls," the chief said.

"That has a labour impact. I don't care how you slice it."

"But over time, that's going to build up and cause challenges."

"Right now, we can handle it based on our current FTEs, but if this situation continues, all police services across the north are looking to say the current staffing levels will not do it," Stevenson said.

Stevenson said he's been hearing about the problems downtown from city councillors and the Downtown Association, and has found money in this year's budget for added overtime patrols in the core area.

But he expressed doubt those patrols can be sustained indefinitely without more cash.

The chief appeared before City Council seeking additional cash for policing in the 2021 city budget,

Some other highlights from Monday's City Council meeting:

• Sault Ste. Marie Public Library asked for a 1.5 per cent budget increase, half a percentage point more than the city wants to give. The extra money is needed to cover wage increases in collective agreements, councillors were told by Rosanne Chan, the library's business administrator
• the annual cost of luxury suites at GFL Memorial Gardens will be reduced to reflect the Ontario Hockey League's shortened 2020-21 season because of COVID-19 restrictions. The payment deadline will be extended to Jan. 15, 2021
• councillors voted unanimously to give the city's blessing to Ontario Finnish Resthome Association's application for a million-dollar Northern Ontario Heritage Foundation Corp. grant for a proposed new five-storey Mauno Kaihla Koti nursing home
• there was effusive praise for a pilot project initiated by city staff at the Bellevue Park greenhouse. They've been taking advantage of a four-month period (September to December) when the greenhouse is usually empty, to grow winter greens for Harvest Algoma. The greens are made available to local food banks
• City Council accepted, without comment, a written report indicating it will take six more months to complete the cladding-and-windows replacement project at the Ronald A. Irwin Civic Centre. Driven by added costs related to the delay, the estimated cost of the project has risen to $8.1 million