A late-night police patrol program got a last-minute one-year reprieve Thursday when Victoria council voted to add $500,000 to its 2023 budget, bringing the property tax increase to approximately 6.3 per cent for this year.
Those additional funds restore $220,000 for the downtown late-night task force, $35,200 for a two-month pilot project of additional beat cops in the downtown and $244,800 toward downtown revitalization.
Money for the late-night task force, which has been operating in the city since 2010, is one-time funding on the condition that in future years it will be included in the police operations budget.
The $220,000 had been cut from the city’s budget during budget talks last month, leading police chief Del Manak to say he was shocked such a proven program he deems essential to operations would lose its funding.
Several city councillors said they weren’t aware they were cutting the program when they approved a series of budget cuts, proposed by city staff, designed to reduce the tax increase this year.
Included in those recommendations was the $220,000 for the late-night program, which appeared in a staff report as a cut from the business and community relations budget.
Mayor Marianne Alto, who made it clear Thursday that unlike some of her council colleagues she knew exactly what she was doing when she initially voted to make the cut, said she reluctantly got on board with restoring the funding only because it will be part of the police budget in future years.
“I do not believe that the decision we made to remove $220,000 was unintentional. And I will certainly say that in my case it was not,” Alto said.
Alto also suggested the cut should not have come as a surprise to the police, noting city staff claim to have told Manak it was in the works last year.
“The assertion that somehow this is pulling the rug out from underneath the police, I think is a bit disingenuous,” she said. “In addition, I fundamentally believe that, as we’ve been told repeatedly, this is absolutely an essential core service. This should absolutely be in the essential core budget of the police department.”
The late-night program, paid for by the city’s budget and not the police budget, funds four police officers every Friday and Saturday night to patrol the streets and goes between bars, nightclubs and other late-night spots.
Manak said the officers are dealing with known gang members from the Lower Mainland who frequent Victoria’s night spots, and other violent offenders, taking on the task from bar and night club staff. Officers make their presence known as a deterrent to bad behaviour. They have prevented assaults, stopped potential drunk drivers before they start their cars, regularly intervene where there’s intoxication, disturbances and rival groups starting confrontations. They also look out for vulnerable people.
Manak said the return on the $220,000 investment is off the charts.
The balance of the $500,000 approved Thursday, not used for policing, will go to revitalizing the downtown with a view to encouraging people to visit, increase the number of events and improve public spaces.
“This will boost vibrancy and vitality, and more eyes on the street can help community safety concerns,” said Coun. Krista Loughton.
