FORMERLY THE ROCKY VIEW FIVE VILLAGE WEEKLY
Volume 35, Number 28	OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER FOR THE MD OF ROCKY VIEW #44	Tuesday, July 8, 2008
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Rocky View-Irricana agree on bylaw enforcement
Enrique Massot

The MD of of Rocky View will be providing bylaw enforcement services to the Town of Irricana on a permanent basis after the successful conclusion of a four-month pilot program.

MD Deputy Reeve Greg Boehlke, whose Division 6 surrounds Irricana, supported making the agreement permanent by signing a long-term, new contract to provide enforcement services to the Town.

"This is regional co-operation," he said.

Irricana Mayor Frank Dusome welcomed the approval.

"In the long run, this agreement is going to be a positive long-term solution to our bylaw enforcement needs," he said.

Ted McCauley, manager of Rocky View’s Protective Services, recommended approval of the long-term agreement and said it could enhance enforcement and visibility in northeast Rocky View.

"We came out with a structure that allows flexibility to both sides," he said.

McCauley also said the MD has been able to cover the extra work without additional staff. However, he added, if more communities asked for similar arrangements, then staff increases could be considered.

Rocky View peace officers will enforce Irricana bylaws including traffic, unsightly premises, sidewalk clearing, animal control and land use.

They will also have jurisdiction to enforce some provincial acts such as dangerous dogs, environmental protection, gaming and liquor, trespassing and traffic safety.

The MD will provide 10 monthly hours of patrolling, with a minimum of 2.5 hours per week, for a monthly fee of $1,000.

Officers will also respond to calls from the Town, seven days a week during the normal MD peace officer shift that starts at 8 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m.

Additional services, on top of the agreed upon monthly hours, will be billed to the town at $75 per hour.

Dusome said Boehlke and Reeve Lois Habberfield helped bring the arrangement to reality.

"We are receiving top-notch service for about the same cost we received before," he said. "We used to pay between $700 and $800. Now, for 20 per cent more, we have access to several officers that can enforce traffic violations."

In the past, five communities in the area shared the services of one bylaw officer, but Irricana abandoned the system after receiving repeated complaints from residents.

Now that those communities have lost their bylaw officer, Dusome said, obtaining an intermunicipal agreement with the MD has proved to be the right move.

"These communities are scrambling now, trying to get enforcement," he said. "We are ahead of the game."

Dusome said a slightly higher expense will, in turn, provide the town with a substantial increase in the amount of services it receives.

By the same token, he said, the MD peace officers can now relieve the Beiseker detachment of the RCMP from traffic enforcement issues.

"Now, the MD enforcement officers can deal with stop sign violations, speed and impaired driving and the RCMP can deal with bigger matters," he said.

As another positive consequence of the agreement with Rocky View, said Dusome, is that the town office has stopped dealing with bylaw enforcement issues, which have been taken over by the MD.

"Our town office used to be inundated with complaints," he said."Now, the little more that we pay is going to compensate triple fold with savings in administration time."

However, not all of the MD council was sold on entering an agreement with Irricana.

Rocky View Coun. Gordon Branson, whose division includes Elbow Valley, voted against the agreement because he felt some MD areas receive insufficient enforcement and MD peace officers should be focused on the MD.

"I have a community in my area that has hired extra security help," he said.

Branson also referred to the recent MD contracting of an RCMP officer.

"It is that sense of presence and visibility of patrolling," he said. "We have to look to our needs first and foremost."

McCauley said he had not heard about issues on getting services within the MD.

The only other issue within the agreement was the MD’s lack of provisions to hold cats. The issue will be resolved by creating a local holding facility that will keep animals for three days.

Unclaimed animals will, after the three-day delay, be sent to SCPA facilities.

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