Council speaks to O.P.P. about local crime

By Ken Johnston
Editor

The break-in at the Rainy River Community Centre on Easter weekend and newly reported vandalism this past Saturday at Hannam Park was foremost in the minds of Mayor Deb Ewald and Rainy River Town Council when Staff Sgt. Dave Lucas visited council to present the 2007 Annual Report on policing here.
After listening to his report the Mayor asked if there is anything more the community can do to prevent vandalism and break-ins from occurring at both the community centre and the park.
Lucas said that the O.P.P. have officers trained to do environmental assessments of an area. "We would look at them and see if there are ways we can improve security there... often those ways have a cost factor." However, Lucas said the O.P.P. would do the assessment at no cost to the town.
Mayor Ewald asked if there is any way more patrols could be done in those areas and Lucas said, "Looking at your patrol hours (2,533 in 2007) those are already pretty good numbers. Plus people planning these activities know to watch for us. They can see us go by and then 2 minutes later do the damage."
Lucas said getting the Neighbourhood Watch program up and running should help too. "It will teach people what to look for."
He also noted that the police are using a street visit approach. Stopping and talking to people that are out late at night. "If something occurs we can go back to our logs and go to those people to see if they saw anything."
The public can also report people they may have seen on the streets the night of an incident to help the police conduct an investigation.
Other Business
•Council approved a motion to apply for a Trillium Foundation Grant for a dehumidifier for the local arena. Councillor Gord Armstrong noted that there is a problem with moisture in the arena which stifles event rentals there.
•Council passed a motion to give the Railroad Daze committee $4,000 in start-up funds.
•Council received $38,745 from the province to be used for road and bridge improvements. Each community received money based on the amount of roads they had.
•Free dumping days for Rainy River residents will be May 14, 17, 21 and 24th.
•Council agreed to give the Animal Control Office a $1,000 advance against fees.
•Councillor Marilyn McAlister reported that local carpenter Gary Halverson built the new garbage container and donated his time.