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A new training academy specifically for Vancouver police officers could occupy the location recently vacated by retailer London Drugs in the heart of the Downtown Eastside.
It comes after councillors passed a motion that allocates $1.2 million of one-time funds for the potential academy.
The motion, put forward by Coun. Brian Montague, a former Vancouver Police Department officer, argues that more recruits are needed to reduce police overtime and staffing strain.
It also stated a satellite training academy would also help tailor training specific to Vancouver’s unique situation, given it often hosts large events with hundreds of thousands of attendees.
Currently, municipal police officers in B.C. are trained at the provincially-run Justice Institute of B.C. (JIBC).
Coun. Brian Montague with the ABC Party, who is himself a former Vancouver police officer, argued the JIBC wasn’t meeting the city’s needs in terms of getting more recruits trained fast. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
Montague says that the VPD already supplements the JIBC training with two weeks of training before recruits are sent there, and six to eight weeks of training after recruits graduate from the JIBC.
“I think they do some great work at the JI, but at this point Vancouver has special needs,” Montague told CBC News.
“We are different from West Vancouver, Nelson, Oak Bay, all the other police departments that get their training through the JI.”
Coun. Brian Montague said that Vancouver’s policing needs were unique. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
In addition to committing $1.2 million of one-time funds for the academy, Montague’s motion also means the city will commit $2.8 million for the establishment of a new policing district in the Downtown Eastside.
Now that Montague’s motion has been passed, city staff will report back to council on exact details around the proposed academy, which he says he hopes is operational by May.
The city would need to get provincial approval before the satellite academy can proceed.
Former London Drugs location
The Downtown Eastside saw a dedicated police task force deployed in a bid to deal with longstanding public safety concerns, which the VPD says was a success, even as advocates and residents questioned its efficacy.
Montague’s proposal is for the satellite training academy to occupy the site of the former London Drugs retail outlet in the Woodward’s building, which left a massive void when it closed a little under a month ago.
WATCH | London Drugs location closed earlier this month:
London Drugs to close Downtown Eastside location over safety, operational issues
One of B.C.’s biggest retailers says years of ongoing theft and safety issues are forcing it to close one of its stores. The London Drugs in the Woodward’s building on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside will shut its doors Feb. 1. As Amelia John reports, people in the community say they’re disappointed with the decision.
Landon Hoyt, the executive director of the Hastings Crossing Business Improvement Association, said that his members weren’t opposed to a training academy — but would have preferred more efforts to get a retailer to occupy the space.
“Our research and member engagement shows that anchor retail like this is incredibly important for the community,” he said.
“It creates economic confidence in the neighborhood. Many small businesses rely on it.”
The Woodward’s Building in the Downtown Eastside is in need of an anchor retail tenant, according to the local BIA. (Ethan Cairns/CBC)
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said that the city did everything in its power to support London Drugs while it was operational at the Woodward’s building, and that having a police training facility there would help stabilize the Downtown Eastside.
“It’s going to be really challenging for any retailer to go in there when you have London Drugs that has, you know, vast financial resources [and] they can’t make it work because the the area isn’t stable,” he argued.
JIBC says it’s meeting demand
A spokesperson for the JIBC said that they still had training seats available for its May 11 intake, and did not have a waitlist.
“When we launch our expanded cohorts in May, we will meet or exceed municipal police departments’ seat requests,” the spokesperson said.
They added that the institute were “responsive partners” in response to municipal departments’ hiring projections, and scaled up training accordingly.
Public Safety Minister Nina Krieger said the province had invited proposals for satellite training campuses that were tethered to the JIBC, and the ministry was currently reviewing proposals from police departments in Vancouver, Surrey and south Vancouver Island.
“We are reviewing proposals from police forces, including the VPD, for police academies that are … really tethered to the Justice Institute in terms of curriculum — because we know that standardized training, uniformity of training, is so important across the province,” she said.
LISTEN | New policing district for Downtown Eastside:
This is Vancouver14:45What will a new policing district mean for the Downtown Eastside?
Vancouver Police say District 5 is coming to the Downtown Eastside. Stephen Quinn speaks with Superintendent Gary Hiar about what this change means as a major crime-reduction project comes to an end.