The following topics were discussed at the Regular Council Meeting on Tuesday, May 11th.

National Police Federation – Alberta RCMP vs. a New Provincial Police Service

Council was presented with information regarding the potential move away from RCMP to a new Police Service for the province of Alberta. The presentation provided valuable information to Council on the negative impacts moving away from the RCMP to a new Provincial Police Service would be. The National Police Federation (NPF) is the sole certified bargaining agent representing close to 20,000 Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) across Canada and internationally. The NPF is the largest police labour relations organization in Canada. The NPF’s mission is to provide strong, fair, and progressive representation to promote and enhance the rights of RCMP Members. A Fair Deal Panel (FDP) recommended the Government of Alberta investigate the possibility of creating a new provincial police service. The FDP’s polling and third-party polling shows that this issue is not a concern for the average Albertan. In fact, only eight per cent of respondents support an outright change, and the majority said replacing the RCMP was the least helpful measure proposed by the FDP to improve Alberta’s position in Canada. The NPF says that at a time when Alberta’s economy is hurting, and against the backdrop of COVID-19, creating a new provincial police service would waste hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars that could be better spent elsewhere. Currently, the federal government pays about 30% of Alberta’s RCMP policing costs – that is ~$160 million annually. If Alberta were to replace the RCMP, Alberta taxpayers and local communities would be on the hook for this $160 million, and the full cost of provincial policing, plus significant transition costs. Another survey showed that the large majority of Albertans support the RCMP. 87 per cent of survey respondents in rural south communities, 81 per cent in rural central, 78 percent in rural north and 81 per cent in Edmonton and 74 per cent in Calgary all support the RCMP. Following the presentation, Mayor Painter says the concerns presented to Council during the meeting are the same concerns Council has. "Additional costs to our residents as well as safety. I haven't seen anything in any of these plans or proposals where they would keep the same detachments. We do have a local RCMP detachment and moving forward with this new Alberta Police Force, there's no indication that we would keep the detachment in our community. I think that's very concerning considering our RCMP covers such a large area. We definitely need that representation. We are a major corridor into Alberta and along with that is all the things that travel into Alberta and some reasons why we need the RCMP here." Councillor Ward reiterated his concerns about costs and mentioned Council was proactive regarding this topic. "We have actually been proactive in this. We sent out a letter to the province, the solicitor general about two months ago and asked other municipalities to support that. I'm very concerned about the costs. 95 per cent of our tax increase this year is going to pay for policing that we are not receiving so we have no interest in spending even more money." Anyone who would like more information can visit keepalbertarcmp.ca or look up Keep Alberta RCMP on Facebook.

Procurement of Aerial Platform Fire Engine

Through capital initiatives, an aerial fire truck was requested to be procured. In meetings with Protective Services, specifications were created and quotes requested using Rural Municipalities of Alberta approved suppliers; E-One, Pierce and Rosenbauer. Pierce was the only bidder with a price of $1,247,627.00. The high level specifications created between Transportation and Protective Services were as follows: Single axle chassis to allow operation with a Class 5 license with Q endorsement, engine with 400hp minimum (Cummins is preferred for commonality), minimum 100’ aerial with platform tip, minimum 6 person cab configuration, minimum 500 gallon onboard water capacity, Class A Foam System, minimum 1500 GPM measured at the pump, optional electronically controlled valves, LED 360° Lighting, 360° Birds Eye Camera System, headsets for communications, front, sides and rear flood lighting, 200’ of 1 ¾” hose in a front compartment, V-mux or Command Zone Information Control System, Quick Release SCBA Brackets, helmet clips and storage, strip lighting inside cabinets and on ladder and 2000w inverter. Following receipt of proposal, Protective Services requested the addition of a Pierce Ultimate Configuration (PUC) pumping system to improve ease of pump maintenance, and breathing air to the platform allowing crew to be operable for longer periods without having to change air bottles.

As well as the addition of new hoses (800' of 5", 600' of 1.75" and 200' of 2.5'), and nozzles (3 x 1.5" and 1 x 2.5"). (Upgrades are an addition of $122,608 to original estimate). Cost before taxes including requested options, hoses and nozzle is $1,370,235.00. Funding of up to $1.5M is available through borrowing bylaw 1074, 2021. Council was all in agreement about the importance of adding this vehicle to the fleet. Mayor Painter stressed how important this engine will be. "It is an expensive piece of equipment and I've had conversations with a few people who don't believe we need an aerial platform truck. My experience is after 22 years with the fire department it's definitely not a truck that works with every situation but it does give good fire protection coverage at a higher altitude where you can get the areas you can't from the ground. It takes the risks away from the firemen as well and we also now have a three story high senior structure being built in Coleman and there could be a potential problem there. We do need this type of apparatus to battle a type of fire that could result there. It's hard to swallow that kind of a price tag but these vehicles aren't cheap and it will last us a long time." Councillor Sygutek said she doesn't believe this purchase needs to be debated. "If it saves one life it's worth $1.3 million. If there is a fire at the new seniors complex, without this truck, we can't get to them. We couldn't get to anyone on the top floor. This community is growing leaps and bounds. We're going to have buildings going up because it's the way we want the community to grow. It has to grow up to have the density we want and we need to move with the times." Councillor Sygutek then made a motion that Council moves to approve the purchase of a Pierce Ascendant 110’ Aerial Platform Fire Engine for $1,370,235.00 from Commercial Emergency Equipment Company. The motion was carried.

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