April 25, 2008

Late last year, Maple Ridge applied for and was approved as a pilot site for the RCMP's Community Safety Officer (CSO) program. Municipal Council set aside funding for the pilot project and directed staff to explore how CSOs could be implemented in our municipality. We have every confidence that the pilot will be successful so have identified a long-term funding strategy for the program. Inspector Doug Scott, the project manager for the RCMP, has spent considerable time looking at the spectrum of protective services already in place. The recommendations in this report were developed in collaboration with Inspector Scott and have his support. While the initial focus of the review was on exploring ways to implement CSOs, the focus broadened for an examination of the best ways to support our police officers, given limited resources. This is reflected in the recommendations in this report [PDF, 61KB].