Victoria Police promise 'community-based approach' in 5-year plan

The Victoria Police Department is unveiling a new five-year plan to refocus policing in both Victoria and Esquimalt on community interactions.

According to Chief Constable Frank Elsner, the new plan will focus on a "community-based approach."

"It is based on what we heard from you, what you want from your police and how we can work together to make our shared communities the healthiest they can be," he said in a statement.

Barb Desjardins, mayor of Esquimalt and co-chair of the police board, says the plan is focused on different ways to reach the community and interact with them.

"It identifies the things we've heard from the community, the things we've heard internally from our police force," she told All Points West host Robyn Burns.

"We've heard over and over that the community wants to be part of this. So that's a significant recognition and ability to make use of the people out there on the streets to help us with keeping our community safe."

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Desjardins said the plan is also focused on communication and "intelligence-led policing," which she said aims to make the police more proactive.

When it comes to working on mental health and addictions problems, especially in Downtown Victoria, Desjardins says police will be focused on improving partnerships with community partners and "pulling service providers together" for better information sharing.

She said two new police officers will be hired to work specifically on mental health and addictions issues as part of a pilot project. The plan also calls for a full-time policy analyst to be added to staff.

The new five-year plan would see approximately $300,000 added to the police budget, with the costs shared by both Victoria and Esquimalt.

To hear the full story, click the audio labelled:Police promise new 'community-based approach' in Victoria, Esquimalt