Crime Prevention Programs (Community Policing).

Recommendation:
That the following consultation process be approved to review crime prevention support in Edmonton:
  1. Administration host a forum, “Building Bridges,” as detailed in Attachment 1 (of the December 30, 2002, Community Services Department report).
  2. Administration prepare a report, in consultation with Edmonton Police Service, that analyses the support given to crime prevention in Edmonton, excluding that of Edmonton Police Service, and report back to the Community Services Committee by June 2003.

Report Summary

This report recommends a consultation process for community crime prevention programs and an analysis of crime prevention support in Edmonton. It also examines the need for a Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) Advisory Committee.

Previous Council/Committee Action

At the September 23, 2002, Community Services Committee meeting, the following motions were passed:

  1. That a consultation process be recommended by Community Services Department in consultation with Edmonton Police Services to review crime prevention programs offered and ways of reducing duplication in conjunction with the many crime prevention programs offered.
  2. That as part of the review, an analysis of the support (including financial support) provided by City departments, in consultation with the Edmonton Police Services, be undertaken.
  3. That the implementation of a Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) Advisory Committee be examined.
  4. That the Community Services Department report back to the January 6, 2003, Community Services Committee meeting.

At the July 8, 2002, Community Services Committee meeting, Councillor Leibovici made the following inquiry:

“It is becoming increasingly evident that community-related programs and community policing are key elements to prevent crime. Block Parents, Neighbourhood Watch, the D.A.R.E. Program, School Resource Officers, and dedicated Community Police Officers are some examples of how City Departments, School Boards and Police Services work together to help prevent criminal activity.

I would like information from the Community Services Department in consultation with Police Services on the status of current crime prevention programs in the City of Edmonton, plans for dedicated community police resources and recommendations for addressing the continuation and enhancement of community prevention programs.”

Report

  1. Consultation Process

Community Services Department’s Safer Cities Advisory Committee is prepared to work with Edmonton Police Service to co-ordinate a meeting of community crime prevention organizations. The purpose of this forum will be to share information and look at ways of working together more effectively. Building Bridges: Community Crime Prevention in Edmonton is tentatively scheduled for February 2003 (Attachment 1).

  1. Support for Crime Prevention

If approved, the consultation will result in a report on the resources currently available to support crime prevention in Edmonton. This report will be completed in Spring 2003.

  1. Feasibility of a Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) Advisory Committee

Neighbourhood Watch has expressed support for a CPTED Advisory Committee. However, Administration believes that CPTED principles are currently strongly implemented by planning and development officers in the course of their work and an advisory committee is not needed at this time.

Decisions made by past City Councils have resulted in the development process and approach to the application of CPTED principles that exists today in Edmonton (Attachment 2).

Since 1995, CPTED principles have been a critical part of all urban development in Edmonton. Regulatory changes were implemented through amendments to the Land Use Bylaw and the General Municipal Plan. In this way, the regulatory review and approval process acknowledged CPTED principles and established them as an integral part of the design review process.

Today in Edmonton, City Development Officers are certified CPTED professionals. Their job is to implement and support the Design Guidelines for a Safer City, approved by City Council in 1995, using their own judgement and expertise. The system in place today relies more on guidelines and principles than on rigid regulations. The City’s Planning and Development Department feels that the current system, supported by provisions of the Zoning Bylaw, strongly supports CPTED principles and enables Development Officers to effectively guide and encourage the development of a safer community.

The Edmonton approach recognizes that CPTED principles are not easily codified into rigid regulations, but rather provide solid guidelines for safe development. In the current regulatory system, City Planning and Development officials feel CPTED principles are strongly implemented by department professionals.

In addition, the mandate of the Safer Cities Advisory Committee rests on the twin concepts of Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) and Crime Prevention through Social Development (CPSD). The Safer Cities Committee is currently developing its Strategic Plan for 2003-2005, which will include providing support for CPTED awareness initiatives.

Budget / Financial Implications

Costs for the Forum for community crime prevention agencies and the analysis of resources will be jointly funded by Community Services Department and Edmonton Police Service from existing budgets. Community Services Department will provide a facilitator for the Forum.

Justification of Recommendation

a)Community crime prevention groups, as represented by Neighbourhood Watch, have raised the need for a consultation designed to look at more effective ways of working together. This forum will provide an opportunity for organizations with similar mandates to explore areas of mutual concern.

b)The proposed report on resources available for crime prevention in Edmonton will help service providers, funders and decision-makers to determine what, if any, additional support or action is required.

Background Information Attached

  1. Building Bridges: Community Crime Prevention in Edmonton , February 2003
  2. CPTED and the City Today

Others Approving this Report

  1. Larry Benowski, General Manager, Planning and Development
  2. Chief Bob Wasylyshen, Edmonton Police Service

(Page 1 of 3)

Attachment 1

Building Bridges: Community Crime Prevention in Edmonton February 2003.

Building Bridges: Community Crime Prevention in Edmonton is a one day Forum sponsored by Community Services and the Edmonton Police Service/Youth and Crime Prevention Unit and supported by the Safer Cities Advisory Committee. It will bring together a broad spectrum of community organizations working on crime prevention to explore new ways of working together more effectively.

Background

There are many significant and successful initiatives underway in Edmonton in the area of crime prevention. There is, however, often a lack of knowledge in the community about what is going on. Building Bridges will gather together community agencies working in crime prevention in order to look at co-ordinating efforts, sharing successes and finding effective ways of working together. This forum will build on a similar November 2002, in-house session of Edmonton Police Service’s Youth and Crime Prevention Unit.

Purpose

Building Bridges will bring together a broad spectrum of the community, essentially volunteer-based organizations. The aim of this session will be to:

  • Build bridges, share information, and hear about success stories of community crime prevention work;
  • Identify challenges and needs (what’s happening, what’s not happening);
  • Consider the need for an umbrella crime prevention organization in Edmonton and the role it might play in terms of monitoring duplication and identifying efficiencies in community crime prevention;
  • Establish a Steering Committee to determine the feasibility of such a coalition in Edmonton and to move forward on this initiative;
  • Complete a final report.

Date, Time and Place

Building Bridges will be held:

  • February 2003 – date and location to be announced
  • Lunch and coffee to be provided
  • A Facilitator will be provided by Community Services Department
  • Costs incurred will be shared by Community Services (Safer Cities) and EPS

Participants

Groups invited will include all those community and volunteer-driven organizations working in urban safety, crime prevention and in the areas of crime prevention through social development or environmental design (CPTED).

Staff, board and volunteers from a variety of community crime prevention organizations will be invited. These groups include: Neighbourhood Watch, Block Parents, Wise Owls, Community Conferencing Association of Edmonton, Prostitution Action and Awareness Foundation of Edmonton, Youth Justice, Community Police Radio Network as well as other agencies, guests and representatives. A list of invitees will be drawn up in consultation with Safer Cities Initiatives, Edmonton Police Services and Neighbourhood Watch.

Attachment 1 - Page 1 of 2

Attachment 2

CPTED and the City Today.

What is CPTED?

The term CPTED refers to Crime Prevention through Environmental Design. The concept came into use in Edmonton in the early 1990s, arising out of recommendations of the Mayor’s Task Force on Safer Cities.

As defined by the National Crime Prevention Institute, CPTED is one important tool in making our communities safer:

“The proper design and effective use of the built environment can lead to a reduction in the fear and incidence of crime, and an improvement in the quality of life.”

CPTED is a crime prevention tool. Applying CPTED principles to a physical environment or structure can reduce opportunities for violence and crime in a community and make citizens feel safer in their neighbourhoods.

Background

In 1992, City Council approved the recommendations of the Mayor’s Task Force on SaferCities which directed the City Planning and Development Department, aided by the Edmonton Police Service, to develop a set of CPTED criteria and performance standards for:

a)Approval by City Council,

b)Inclusion through amendment in the Land Use Bylaw and

c)Use in the review and approval of all proposed development.

In 1995, Design Guide for a Safer City was written and approved by City Council as a tool to assist design professionals, the building industry and communities to build safer physical environments.

In 1995, regulatory changes were implemented through amendments to the Land Use Bylaw and the General Municipal Plan. By doing this, the regulatory review and approval process acknowledged CPTED principles and established them as an integral part of the design review process. In addition, Senior Development officers received CPTED training at that time and there was a strong effort to promote CPTED to related professions and to the community at large.

Tools

Several tools exist today that provide direction and help in designing or evaluating buildings or public spaces with CPTED principles in mind:

  • Design Guide for a Safer City provides specific guidelines for creating safe parks, streets and parking structures.
  • Crime Prevention Safety Audit Guide- a free self-help tool that assists communities to assess and reduce opportunities for crime.
  • Parkade CPTED Checklist- developed for use by parkade audit teams.
CPTED Today in Edmonton

Many communities today respect the City of Edmonton across Canada for its approach to designing a safer city. Municipal urban designers and planners are trained to apply CPTED principles to development, implementing the Design Guidelines for a Safer City, approved by City Council in 1995, using their own judgement and expertise. In addition, Safer Cities Initiatives provide a forum to promote public awareness and understanding of CPTED and how it can enhance urban safety.

  1. Planning and Development Process

Trained, municipal development officers encourage the incorporation of CPTED principles in all commercial, industrial, multi-unit residential uses and parkade structures. They advise applicants for new or redevelopment permits about the CPTED Design Guidelines and may require a CPTED assessment if it is deemed necessary.

b.Parkade Audit and Award Project

To improve parkade safety, minimum-security standards based on CPTED principles have been incorporated in the amendments to the Land Use and Minimum Property Standards Bylaws approved by City Council on August 23, 1998. According to Bylaw 12800/54.7, a Development Officer must require an official CPTED assessment of any development with a significant parking garage and strongly encourage compliance with the guidelines of Section 3.1 of the Design Guide.

From 1997-99 the Planning and Development Department, in partnership with Downtown Business Association and the Edmonton Police Service, worked to improve public safety in downtown parkades using a safety checklist audit approach. During this time, 33 crime prevention safety audits were conducted, followed up by recommendations for safety improvements. Positive responses were received from 22 owners/operators, with four parkade owners undertaking significant steps to incorporate CPTED principles in their parkades. CPTED certificates were issued to seven parkades that met safety criteria. Ongoing coordination of the parkade audit and awards project now rests with the Downtown Business Association.

c.Other Civic Departments

Community Services also uses the Design Guidelines and CPTED in its work of planning and designing parks and other public spaces.

  1. Safer Cities Initiatives

The Safer Cities Initiatives of the City of Edmonton, which began in 1990, have as their cornerstone the twin concepts of CPTED Crime Prevention through Environmental Design and CPSD Crime Prevention through Social Development. Safer Cities spearheaded publication of the Crime Prevention Safety Audit Guide and its distribution to communities across the city. To date, the Audit Guide has been used by over 50 neighbourhoods, is on the City web site and continues to be distributed to interested communities upon request.

The new Safer Cities Advisory Committee is currently developing its strategic plan for 2003-05. Building on the Crime Prevention Safety Audit Guide and enhancing public awareness of CPTED are under consideration as key priorities.

  1. Edmonton Police Service

The Edmonton Police Service CPTED unit provides training to police officers, including a four-day Level I course which can be combined with a one-day Crime Free Multi-Housing Course. Safety Audits are also provided to community businesses and organizations, as part of the CPTED training program.

Attachment 2 - Page 1 of 3