AGENDA
MAYORS COMMITTEE SPECIAL MEETING
Thursday, April 16, 2009 11:00 a.m. 2nd Floor Boardroom 4330 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC
Committee Members: Chair, Director Lois Jackson, Delta Director Don MacLean, Pitt Meadows Vice Chair, Director Richard Walton, Director Greg Moore, Port Coquitlam North Vancouver District Director Darrell Mussatto, Director Malcolm Brodie, Richmond North Vancouver City Director Brenda Broughton, Lions Bay Director George Peary, Abbotsford Director Derek Corrigan, Burnaby Director Gregor Robertson, Vancouver Mayor Ernie Daykin, Maple Ridge Director Richard Stewart, Coquitlam Director Ralph Drew, Belcarra Director Joe Trasolini, Port Moody Mayor Peter Fassbender, Langley City Mayor Bob Turner, Bowen Island Director Catherine Ferguson, White Rock Director Dianne Watts, Surrey Director Pamela Goldsmith-Jones, Director Hal Weinberg, Anmore West Vancouver Director Wayne Wright, New Westminster Director Rick Green, Langley Township
Please advise Pamela Goingo at (604) 432-6212 if you are unable to attend.
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Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District· Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation 4330 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC, Canada VSH 4GB 604-432-6200 www.metrovancouver.org
NOTICE TO THE GVRD MAYORS COMMITTEE
11:00 a.m. Thursday, April 16, 2009 2nd Floor Boardroom, 4330 Kingsway, Burnaby, British Columbia. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss policing.
A G E N D A
1. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA
1.1 Thursday, April 16, 2009 Special Meeting Agenda Staff Recommendation: That the Mayors Committee adopt the agenda for its special meeting scheduled for Thursday, April 16, 2009 as circulated.
2. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEE OR STAFF
2.1 Proposed Resolutions to FCM on Criminal Code Reform Designated Speaker: Lois Jackson, Chair, Metro Vancouver Board Recommendation: That the Mayors Committee: a) Endorse and submit the proposed Federation of Canadian Municipalities Emergency Resolution on Criminal Code Reform dated April 8, 2009; and b) Forward the report dated April 9, 2009, tilted ‘Proposed Resolutions to FCM on Criminal Code Reform’ to the Board for endorsement.
2.2 Location of Provincial Pre-Trial Centre in Lower Mainland (Verbal Report) Designated Speaker: Lois Jackson, Chair, Metro Vancouver Board (Background Information attached)
3. ADJOURNMENT Staff Recommendation: That the Mayors Committee conclude its special meeting of April 16, 2009.
March 9, 2009
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MC-2 REPORTS FROM COMMITTEE OR STAFF
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MC-4 Item 2.1
Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District· Metro Vancouver Housing Corporation 4330 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC, Canada VSH 4GB 604-432-6200 www.metrovancouver.org
Mayors Committee Special Meeting Date: April 16, 2009
To: Mayors Committee
From: Lois E. Jackson, Chair, Metro Vancouver Board of Directors
Date: April 9, 2009
Subject: Proposed Resolutions to FCM on Criminal Code Reform
Recommendation:
That the Mayors Committee: a) Endorse and submit the proposed Federation of Canadian Municipalities Emergency Resolution on Criminal Code Reform dated April 8, 2009; and b) Forward the report dated April 9, 2009, tilted ‘Proposed Resolutions to FCM on Criminal Code Reform’ to the Board for endorsement.
At the April 4, 2009 Special Meeting of the Mayors Committee, the Committee discussed policing issues and the need for criminal code reform to enable law enforcement agencies to address these issues.
The Committee agreed to enact the proposed change through a resolution to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
A list of issues facing the law enforcement agencies was developed into a resolution and is presented to the Committee for review and endorsement prior to submitting to FCM (see Attachment 1).
FCM has granted Metro Vancouver an extension to submit the emergency resolution by April 17, 2009 to be heard at the Annual Conference in June 2009.
Attachment: FCM Emergency Resolution – Criminal Code Reform – dated April 8, 2009 (eRIM # 4917244)
MC-5 004917237 SUSTAINABLE REGION INITIATIVE. •• TURNING IDEAS INTO ACTION
FCM Emergency Resolution April 8, 2009 CRIMINAL CODE REFORM
WHEREAS law enforcement agencies rely on effective legislative and investigative tools to deal with serious crimes such as homicide, organized crime, kidnapping and internet child luring;
AND WHEREAS law enforcement efforts are being significantly impacted by limitations placed on them due to out-dated legislation, over-burdened court processes and an increasingly sophisticated organized crime element;
AND WHEREAS there has been a dramatic escalation in gang warfare in major urban centres across Canada involving the use of illegal firearms that are readily available from domestic and international sources;
AND WHEREAS the proliferation of new telecommunications service providers and technologies, such as personal communications service, satellite communications, encryption, internet communications, local number portability, and local multipoint communications service, presents significant technical challenges to lawfully intercept and interpret private communications;
AND WHEREAS the rules of disclosure and the expansion of its scope have become an enormous challenge for law enforcement agencies and can be used to frustrate court processes;
AND WHEREAS the burden of proof in relation to forfeiture is totally incumbent upon the prosecutor and criminal organizations are finding ways to circumvent legislation requiring forfeiture of proceeds of crime;
AND WHEREAS public confidence in the justice system is eroded when courts release repeat or dangerous offenders out on bail, impose sentences that are deemed to be disproportionately lenient relative to the magnitude of the crime, or compensate offenders for time held in custody at a rate of two days for every one day served;
AND WHEREAS the public is supportive of a 'zero tolerance' approach to gun violence, including tougher mandatory sentencing and no plea-bargaining for offenses involving firearms;
AND WHEREAS there is an inequity in funding between municipal police forces and RCMP policing through the "Municipal Policing Agreement";
AND WHEREAS there is a need to focus more resources on crime prevention;
AND WHEREAS the Premier of the Province of British Columbia supports the call for legislative change:
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Federation of Canadian Municipalities be requested to call upon the Government of Canada through the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General to amend the Criminal Code and other relevant legislation to address the above issues.
~4 metro vancouver v'Jww.metrov.mcouver Otq
MC-6 BRITISH COLUMBIA
April 2, 2009
Her Worship Lois Jackson Chair Metro Vancouver Mayors' CommitteeCommittee 4500 Clarence Taylor Crescent Delta BC V4KV4K 3E23E2
Dear Mayor Jackson:Jackson:
Thank you for your willingness toto workwork withwith usus andand withwith youryour fellowfellow mayorsmayors toto findfind aa suitablesuitable site for a newnew LowerLower MainlandMainland pretrialpretrial centre.centre. YourYour leadershipleadership willwill bebe invaluableinvaluable asas thethe Mayors' CommitteeCommittee commencescommences workwork toto identifyidentify viableviable locations.locations.
My Ministry is committed toto providingproviding activeactive andand ongoingongoing supportsupport toto thethe Mayors'Mayors' CommitteeCommittee asas they consider the government's identifiedidentified sitesite andand provide advice on other possible sites. WeWe want to incorporate your collective expertise intointo ourour decision-makingdecision-making process.process. II trust that all of the participating mayors will work collaborativelycollaboratively inin thisthis endeavour.endeavour.
I understand that this is a complex issue andand there will be manymany perspectivesperspectives representedrepresented atat thethe table. However,However, II believebelieve wewe allall recognizerecognize thethe urgenturgent needneed forfor additionaladditional remandremand spacespace on thethe Lower Mainland. TheThe totaltotal inmateinmate populationpopulation hashas increasedincreased fromfrom anan averageaverage ofof 21852185 inin fiscalfiscal 2004/2005 to 2809 in fiscal 2008/2009. ThisThis populationpopulation isis growinggrowing byby anan averageaverage ofof 124124 remanded inmates and 32 sentenced inmatesinmates perper year.year. TenTen yearsyears ago,ago, thethe remand population represented 1/3 of our total inmate population. ItIt nownow accountsaccounts forfor 1/21/2 ofof thethe overalloverall population.population. This demand must be accommodated.accommodated.
Given this pressing need and the projected four-year construction timeline, itit isis criticalcritical thatthat youryour work proceed immediately to ensure that a recommendation isis submittedsubmitted byby SeptemberSeptember 1,1, 2009.2009.
...../2./2
Ministry of Office of the Mailing Address:Addtess: Public Safety MinistetMinister PO Box 9053 Stn ProvPrav Govt and Solicitor General Victoria BeBC V8W 9E2
MC-7 Her Worship LoisLois JacksonJackson Page 22
By way of background I amam including withwith thisthis letterletter aa documentdocument thatthat providesprovides somesome contextualcontextual information including growthgrowth trends,trends, currentcurrent serviceservice deliverydelivery modelsmodels andand aa summarysummary ofof thethe keykey criteria used by the independent consultantconsultant andand thethe MinistryMinistry toto evaluateevaluate thethe suitabilitysuitability ofof prospective sites. I Iamam alsoalso attachingattaching aa copycopy ofof thethe sitesite reviewreview finalfinal report.report.
It should be noted that the initial sitesite surveysurvey work waswas completedcompleted overover twotwo yearsyears agoago and and waswas compiled for potential remand andand sentencedsentenced facilityfacility sites.sites. AsAs such,such, itit representsrepresents anan historicalhistorical snapshot and is not necessarily reflective ofof thethe currentcurrent availabilityavailability oror suitabilitysuitability ofof identifiedidentified sites.
With regards to a general framework forfor your discussions, MinistryMinistry staffstaff willwill bebe immediatelyimmediately available to meet with the Metro Mayors'Mayors' CommitteeCommittee toto clarifyclarify operationaloperational requirementsrequirements andand accompany the mayors and municipal staffstaff on tours through both North FraserFraser andand SurreySurrey Pretrial Centres. II believebelieve thisthis willwill bebe usefuluseful toto youyou asas youyou considerconsider thethe suitabilitysuitability ofof variousvarious sites. II wouldwould alsoalso encourageencourage youyou toto reviewreview thethe sitesite suitabilitysuitability criteriacriteria outlinedoutlined inin thethe attachedattached backgrounder as a startingstarting point forfor youryour discussions.discussions.
Thank you once again forfor assistingassisting withwith thisthis importantimportant task.task.
Yours sincerely,
John van Dongen Solicitor General
Enclosures
MC-8 BRITISHBRITISH COLUMBIA The Best Place on Earth INFORMATIONINFORMATION BULLETINBULLETIN FForor Immediate Release Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor GeneralGeneral 2009PSSG0040-000663 April 3, 2009
CORRECTION FACILITY SITE SELECTION REPORT RELEASED
VICTORIA –-A A reportreport thatthat looked atat 60 sitessites inin the Lower Mainland as possible locations forfor aa pretrial centre has been provided to the metro Vancouver mayors now tasked with the job of making a recommendationrecommendation toto governmentgovernment onon thethe bestbest site.site.
On March 24, the solicitor general announced he would ask the mayors to propose a location for the centre by Sept 1,1,2009. 2009. He will meet with the mayors this weekend to discuss the next steps in this process.
Two years ago, the ministry asked the property consultant firm of Carmichael Wilson to assess sites in the Lower Mainland withwith thethe potentialpotential toto accommodateaccommodate remandremand andand sentencedsentenced facilities.facilities.
The Carmichael report andand backgroundbackground informationinformation isis availableavailable onlineonline atat iVWW.Pssg.goy'.bc.ca/corrcction~.pssg.gov.bc.calcorrections onon thethe Internet.Internet.
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Media Cindy Rose contact: Public Affairs Officer 250356-6961250 356-6961
For more information on governmentgovernment servicesservices or to subscribesubscribe to the Province's newsnews feedsfeeds usingusing RSS,RSS, visit the Province's websitewebsite at ..:..c""":"":....,..:..,"""""..,..:.." ....~.., .., ..,,;" •
MC-9 Ministry of PublicPublic SafetySafety andand SolicitorSolicitor GeneralGeneral Corrections BranchBranch Adult CustodyCustody DivisionDivision
Lower Mainland PretrialPretrial CentreCentre Background InformationInformation
The NeedNeed
• The province is responsible for thethe custodycustody ofof offendersoffenders servingserving sentencessentences ofof lessless thanthan twotwo years.years. ItIt isis also responsible for custody of persons remandedremanded toto custody while awaitingawaiting thethe outcomeoutcome ofof courtcourt proceedings. PersonsPersons servingserving sentencessentences ofof twotwo yearsyears oror moremore areare thethe responsibilityresponsibility ofof thethe federalfederal government.
• The provincial inmate population isis atat recordrecord levelslevels andand isis growing.growing. OverOver thethe pastpast 55 years,years, sincesince AprilApril 2004, the remand population has beenbeen growing atat an averageaverage raterate ofof 124124 inmatesinmates perper year.year. OverOver thethe same period the sentenced population has grown by an average ofof 3232 inmatesinmates perper year.year. TheThe totaltotal count averaged 2,549 in 2006/07. TheThe totaltotal inin 2008/092008/09 averagedaveraged 2,8092,809 withwith peakspeaks exceedingexceeding 2,900.2,900. More than half are remanded whilewhile tendingtending toto courtcourt proceedings.proceedings.
• Correctional centres are already overcrowded. TheThe provincialprovincial facilitiesfacilities totaltotal aboutabout 1,5001,500 cells,cells, including some dormitories, soso thatthat atat anyany timetime aboutabout 90%90% ofof inmatesinmates areare double-celled.double-celled. Overcrowding is particularly acute in the two pretrial centres in the lower mainland, typically operatingoperating at levels between 190% and 210% of their capacities. ManyMany inmatesinmates mustmust bebe heldheld individuallyindividually duedue toto court orders or to separate those that are prone to violence, exacerbating the shortageshortage of cells.cells. Additional capacity is urgently needed to reduce current overcrowding andand to accommodateaccommodate thethe growth in the inmate population.population.
• The Ministry is actively developing additional capacity. LastLast fallfall 2525 cellscells werewere installedinstalled inin aa newnew structure at the Kamloops Regional Correctional Centre. 5050 cellscells werewere installedinstalled inin newnew structuresstructures atat the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre in Maple Ridge. RecentlyRecently 1818 cellscells werewere openedopened atat thethe Alouette Correctional Centre for Women, also in Maple Ridge. PlanningPlanning isis wellwell advancedadvanced onon thethe development of 104 additional cells at the Alouette facility, targeted for completion late in 2010. InIn Prince George 20 additional cells are currently under construction. AnAn integralintegral partpart ofof thesethese plannedplanned additional capacities is the development of 180 cells for the growing remand population in the Lower Mainland.
The Lower Mainland
•• The remand population, those held pending court proceedings, must be accommodated near the courts of jurisdiction.jurisdiction. WhileWhile manymany appearappear atat courtcourt throughthrough videovideo conferencing,conferencing, personalpersonal courtcourt appearances areare common.common. InIn additionaddition toto thethe courts,courts, accessaccess toto lawyers,lawyers, policepolice andand familyfamily mustmust bebe facilitated.facilitated.
•• As with the general population of the province, the Lower Mainland is the largest area of demand for correctional capacity.capacity. AlmostAlmost halfhalf (48%)(48%) ofof allall malesmales remandedremanded toto custodycustody inin thethe provinceprovince camecame fromfrom courtscourts in the Metro Vancouver region inin 2007/08.
8 •• TheThe Lower Mainland Pretrial Centre (LMPC) will complement two existing pretrial facilities: the 150- ~ cellcell SurreySurrey Pretrial Services Centre and the 300-cell North Fraser Pretrial Centre in Port Coquitlam. ~ TheThe new centre wouldwould service courts in the greater metropolitan Vancouver region including I I() 9 PagePage 1 of 5 en o en<.:> en a.
MC-10 Vancouver Provincial. Supreme and Appeal Courts, courts in North Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast, Richmond, and New Westminster.
•A site is urgently needed to accommodate the approved 180 cells. The proposed facility will initially consist of 5 living units, each with 36 cells. It will be designed to potentially expand to meet future demands. The site will also accommodate an admissions area, administration, staff services, food preparation, health care, segregation, inmate programs, and on-site parking. If a site was available and appropriately zoned by April 1,2009, planning, design and construction would not be completed until late summer 2012. Meanwhile the inmate population continues to grow.
• The Vancouver Pretrial Services Centre was the oldest secure custody facility in the province when it closed in 2002. At the time inmate populations were low. In 2002/03 there were 2,064 inmates in provincial facilities, of which 798 were remanded inmates. The remand population has increased by 79% since then. The facility consisted of 150 cells in 10 small living units ranging from 13 to 17 cells, two living units per floor. It was inefficient and costly to staff. A consultant examined the possibility of enlarging the living units. This proved unfeasible and the resulting capacity would be insufficient to house the remand population today, or over the foreseeable future.
• Today the Vancouver Pretrial Services Centre is not available. It houses the Vancouver Downtown Community Court. The lower floors have been completely renovated to accommodate Vancouver's Downtown Community Court and related social services. Cells in the upper floors have been demolished. Even if the facility was fully functional as a remand facility, an additional site would be needed today to accommodate additional capacity. Further, this would result in two remand centres serving the Metro Vancouver courts, an inefficient model. The site, at 275 E. Cordova Street adjacent to the Vancouver Provincial Courts, is too small for re-development.
The Model
• The proposed LMPC will service courts in the greater metropolitan Vancouver region including Vancouver Provincial, Supreme and Appeal Courts, courts in North Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast, in Richmond, and in New Westminster. In order to provide a staff-efficient and cost-efficient pretrial centre, remanded inmates from all regional courts will be housed in one location. Because it will serve various courts it does not need to be adjacent to anyone courthouse.
• Sheriffs will transport inmates between the courts and the pretrial centre. Defence lawyers will visit their clients. Police require access to the accused for interviews. Family members will visit. The site should be located to best accommodate these access requirements. A site of adequate size, at least 4.5 hectares (11 acres), should be close to the epicentre of the courts being served (see page 4). That optimal location would minimize the travel time for Sheriffs to escort inmates between the various courts and the pretrial centre, thereby saving considerable staffing and vehicle costs each year.
The Carmichael Site Search Report
• In 2006/07 the Ministry of Public Safety/Solicitor General (PSSG) requested a search of sites in the Lower Mainland with potential to accommodate correctional facilities, both for sentenced and pretrial inmates. The search was conducted before specific planning was begun on the proposed LMPC. In February 2007 the Ministry received the "Carmichael Report" which identified 60 sites considered by the consultant. (58 sites were previously reported due to human error. In addition, the report erroneously identifies a courthouse in Burnaby.)
• The site search methodology used by the independent consultant to identify prospective sites for a new pretrial and/or sentenced facility included:
Page 2 of 5
MC-11 1. Contacted commercial realtors in the geographical locations who are considered to havehave extensive experience with largerlarger acreageacreage properties;properties; 2. Discussed potential future options with private and institutional landowners, agents, investors and developers; 3. Reviewed the Multiple Listing ServiceService (MLS)(MLS) forfor allall currentcurrent andand expiredexpired listings listings ofof potentialpotential sites;sites; 4. Compiled property data (i.e.(Le. site dimensions, zoning, services) from publicpublic records, the consultant'sconsultant s files, MLS, ICI Data Systems, propertyproperty owners,owners, realreal estateestate agentsagents andand otherother appraisers (note: did not review any engineering studies for the candidate properties); 5. Reviewed the Zoning Bylaw, Official Community Plan, and Agricultural Land Commission for each jurisdiction to identify landland useuse controls;controls; 6. Studied legal base maps for the land areas in each city/municipality to identify sites meetingmeeting the size criteria; 7. Prioritized the candidate sites from best to worst for each municipality within the study area. For example, in Burnaby B1B1 would bebe thethe bestbest sitesite andand B3B3 wouldwould bebe thethe worstworst site.site.
• The site search report contained an analysis of the keykey characteristicscharacteristics forfor eacheach candidatecandidate site,site, outlining the positive and negative attributes with respect to suitability for the proposedproposed facility. TheThe location and number of totaltotal candidatecandidate sitessites identifiedidentified were:were: •■ Abbotsford: 5 sites •■ Burnaby: 3 sites •■ Coquitlam: 2 sites •■ Chilliwack: 3 sites •■ Delta: 8 sites •■ Langley: 7 sites •■ Maple Ridge: 2 sites •■ Mission: 4 sites •■ New Westminster: 1 site •■ Port Coquitlam: 2 sites •■ Richmond: 11 sites •■ Surrey: 11 sites •■ Vancouver: 1 site
Ministry Evaluation
• PSSG developed search parameters and key site characteristics to evaluate the suitability of each of the candidate sites for a pretrial centre. These included:included: •■ Location -—The Thesite siteshould shouldbe bein in proximityproximity toto identifiedidentified remandremand service epicentersepicenters 1 whichwhich included sites located in Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, North Delta, North or Central Surrey, or West LangleyLangley •■ Size -—Site Sitesize sizeshould should bebe greatergreater than 11 acres •■ Zoning and land use potential •■ Price guidelines •■ Access, servicing, topography, improvements •■ Environmental concerns •■ Surrounding land uses
• As a result of the narrowed search criteria, 3131 candidate sitessites werewereshortlisted: shortlisted: •■ Burnaby: 3 sites •■ Delta: 6 sites •■ Langley: 3 sites •■ New Westminster: 11 site
1 RemandRemand serviceservice epicenters are identified by the calculation ofof thethe courtscourts served,served, thethe numbersnumbers ofof persons remanded from each,each, andand shortestshortest totaltotal traveltravel distance.distance. Page 3 of 55
MC-12 • Richmond: 11 sites • Surrey: 4 sites • Vancouver: 1 site
Locations in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam were not included due to proximity to the North Fraser Pretrial Centre.
• PSSG assessed and eliminated these short-listed candidate sites based on one or more of the following criteria: • Located within the Agricultural Land Reserve • Located in designated conservation area • Location does not service multiple regional courthouses • Economics (> $1 million/acre: purchase, re-zoning and site servicing/readiness) • Located within floodplain area
• Through this process of evaluation, the Willingdon Lands site was identified as the preferred site. However, until the Ministry received approval to plan and construct the LMPC, no action could be taken on site selection or procurement. The site report, however, did identify the Willingdon site as viable.
• The Willingdon site is well located to efficiently service the various courts in the metro Vancouver region. It is a favourable economic option given provincial ownership, saving taxpayers millions of dollars in site purchase costs. Its zoning gives it a probable 2 to 3 year lead over other potential sites that would require time for the rezoning and purchase process. The intended use is consistent with the historic correctional presence on the site. Given the urgent need for additional pretrial capacity it was clearly favourable.
Site Suitability Criteria for Metro Mayors' Consideration
• On March 24, 2009 the Solicitor General announced that he would ask the 22 Mayors of Metro Vancouver to propose a location for the pretrial centre by September 1. 2009, based upon certain criteria.
• Site suitability criteria include: •A minimum buildable area of 5.7 hectares (14 acres), preferably 8.1 hectares (20 acres); • Narrowest dimension of the site should exceed 170 metres (560 feet); • Serviced, including electricity, gas, water, and sewer; • Minimal negative environmental conditions; • Minimal probability of a First Nations claim to aboriginal title; • Maximum probability of expeditious appropriate zoning; • Proximity to public transit; and • Not in the Agricultural Land Reserve.
• The site should ideally be located to minimize travel time to the courts in the Metro Vancouver region. The courts are associated with the following estimated proportion of the remand population that will be accommodated.
Court Location % of Remanded Inmates • Vancouver Provincial, Supreme and Appeal 74 • New Westminster 12 • North Vancouver and Sunshine Coast 8 • Richmond 6
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MC-13 Lower Mainland Courts and PretrialPretrial CentresCentres
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