The Belleville Police Services Board has passed a 2021 capital budget that is significantly less expensive than what was presented the past two years.
The approximately $632,000 spending plan is down 124% from 2020 and down 231% from 2019, which both included expenses for the new police station, and is also down 10% from 2018, when funding for the new headquarters wasn’t being factored in yet.
Acting Chief Mike Callaghan says he and his staff worked hard to narrow down to a “fair capital budget” that includes only “mission critical items”.
“So when we went through our budget we were able to identify different things that we can put off for another year or so and look at them down the road. The important thing is we’ve established the items in our capital budget that are paramount for us to be able to provide community safety and development.”
He added that the budget committee felt it was important to present a significantly lower budget this year, especially given the current financial climate in the city.
“There was a significant conscious effort, knowing that the city and our community members are cognizant of the hard times that everybody is facing. We obviously understand and appreciate that and share in that concern, that we’re trying to provide a budget that meets our needs, but is also very respectful of the taxpayers.”
Police Board Chair Jack Miller says the lowered budget follows through on a promise made to City Council last year.
“Acting Chief Callaghan and the committee knew that it had to come down considerably and we made a promise to council a year ago that we would be coming back with a number substantially less. It’s been addressed in that respect and I think the needs of the police service have also been addressed, so we can continue to keep the community safe.”
Belleville Police Service Deputy Chief Mike Callaghan speaks at the introduction of the police force’s new K-9 Officer Bax, on September 8, 2020. (Photo: David Foot / Quinte News)
Among the big ticket items for 2021, 51% of the overall capital budget, or about $322,000 is being spent on vehicles as part of the police force’s fleet replacement plan.
Callaghan says when it comes to replacing cruisers, SUVs and trucks, it’s important to swap them out while they still have some value.
“We have a vehicle maintenance schedule that we look at what the cost of the vehicle is and then we try to ensure that when we’re selling that vehicle, there is some type of residual value that will offset the cost of that vehicle going forward. It’s a real balancing act and some vehicles obviously have higher maintenance needs than other ones, and those were the ones we looked at getting rid of first.”
The acting chief was also asked about the need to spend $7,500 on suppressors for patrol rifles, given the close attention being paid to the type of equipment and weapons police are carrying.
He says that equipment is for training purposes only, with the health and safety of officers top of mind.
“The suppressors are not to be used on the road, they’re actually for training purposes. Because it’s a high-powered rifle we’re even using double earplugs right now and those double earplugs are still having a potential impact on the health and safety of our officers. So with that suppression, when they’re meeting qualifications and discharging a lot of rounds, you want to ensure that the suppressor is diminishing that noise.”
Miller feels that the capital budget is appropriate and will allow the police force to buy the equipment it needs to keep the community and its officers safe.
“They have to have the tools to do the job. We expect our police service to keep us safe and it’s kind of tough to do that when you don’t give them the tools. It’s not just a matter of keeping us safe, but we have to keep them safe and sometimes you have to add equipment in order to address changing needs, or replace equipment because it’s antiquated. All of that is within the budget along with the usual replacement of vehicles.”
The 2021 capital budget still has to be approved by Belleville City Council when it goes into budget discussions.
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