THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay’s bylaw enforcement division is preparing to move forward with a major restructuring process that will bring evening and weekend service, after securing a key agreement with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
That agreement, reached in late February, will allow for greater flexibility in enforcement officers' hours of work, setting the stage for a long-planned expansion of the division, city council heard Monday.
It's hoped the move will reduce strain on the Thunder Bay Police Service and slash what administration admitted are “extremely long” response times to bylaw enforcement complaints, averaging two weeks.
“There was a gap here, big time,” said Mayor Bill Mauro. “At the police services board, Coun. [Kristen] Oliver and I were hearing very clearly from the chief that there were far too many calls that should have been more appropriately handled by bylaw [officers]."
"This will go some way – not a massive way – but some way, I think, to relieving a bit of the work for the police service.”
The restructuring was approved as part of the 2022 budget, adding roughly 3.5 positions for a total of 12 enforcement officers and increasing the department’s budget by more than a third, to roughly $1.5 million.
Whether the added enforcement will see the city recoup its investment with additional revenue from fines isn't certain, licensing and enforcement manager Doug Vincent told councillors, while promising substantial new revenues could be unlocked.
However, it will allow the city to not only field officers on evenings and weekends, but launch targeted enforcement blitzes, he said.
The expansion also includes funding for new marked vehicles and technology like GPS and dispatch systems.
The new enforcement model will see the city play a smaller role on animal welfare, shifting much of that work to private organizations like the humane society.
The new model is expected to be in place by summer, with recruitment to fill the new positions underway.
